Sixty-four.
That’s the number of goals twin terrors Jen May and Jana Bradley have combined to scored for the Oregon women’s lacrosse team this season.
This week May, Bradley and the rest of the Ducks take their firepower down to Moraga, Calif., to play in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship Tournament.
Oregon (5-10 overall, 1-4 MPSF) is seeded fifth in the six-team tournament and will first face number four seed UC Davis on Thursday.
“We’re really excited to play UC Davis again,” May said. “We only lost by two the last time we played them, and we’ve learned so much since the beginning. The team is excited to go off and show everyone what we’re capable of now.”
Oregon last played the Aggies in March, losing a close battle, 11-9. At the time, the Ducks were mired in the middle of a five-game losing streak.
Things have changed since then.
The Ducks finally found their rhythm toward the tail end of their inaugural season, finishing with three wins in their final four games.
Oregon scored 57 goals in its last five games, increasing production by 50 percent from the 38 goals scored in its first five contests.
With almost a full season of play under their belts, the 22 freshmen on the Ducks’ 24-player roster have finally adjusted to the rigors of the collegiate game.
“It’s (lacrosse at the collegiate level) definitely a lot different from the high school game. The pace is a lot faster,” Bradley said.
May agreed with her teammate.
“The pace is really different,” she said. “And everyone is so much more conditioned. In high school, you’d have maybe a couple of girls who stood out as the star players, and who could really play.
“On the collegiate level, everyone on the field is good, everyone on the field can catch and throw, everyone can switch left and right. You have to get used to that level of competition.”
Both May and Bradley have had to make adjustments to their games this year to perform better at the collegiate level.
“I’m a lot more composed now,” Bradley said. “I can see the field better as a player instead of just running down and scoring.”
May agreed that the increased competition has stretched her abilities to make her a more
all-around player.
“I’m a lot more involved on the defensive end,” she said. “In high school, you didn’t have to play a set defense. Now I’m working on my defense so that I can be more versatile, especially in the midfield.”
With its first season coming to a close, Oregon has become a
close-knit team, and the Ducks are
looking forward to success down the road.
“This year’s definitely been hard, and we’re all pretty burnt out right now. But we’ve been leaning on each other for support,” Bradley said.
“This was a year of memories: first practice, first goal, first win — the first of everything,” said May, “We’ve played some top teams this year, and it was exciting to see where we matched up against them. It was exciting to see what we could be in four years.”
The Ducks will be in Moraga for the MPSF tournament May 5-7.