SALEM, Ore. – Scoring one goal in each half while defensively limiting short-handed George Fox University to only three shots total and one shot on goal, the Willamette University Bearcats posted a 2-0 victory over the visiting Bruins in a Northwest Conference women's soccer match Saturday afternoon here at Sparks Field.

Willamette controlled play from the get-go, rarely allowing the ball into its half over the first ten minutes.  The Bearcats finally broke through when Sarah Desautels collected a free ball in front of the goal and fired it into the lower right corner of the net for her third goal of the season.

In the second half, the Bearcats added some insurance at the 75:50 mark.  After a skirmish for possession, Ariel Wilson found Paige Lancourt on the right side of the field with a pass, and Lancourt took a touch past a Bruin defender, then blasted a soaring shot from 30 yards out that dropped behind Bruin keeper Alyssa Montero.  The goal was her second of the season.

Willamette out-shot George Fox 7-1 in the first half and 13-3 for the game, including an 8-1 advantage in shots on goal, but Montero made six saves to keep the game from getting out of hand.  Desautels led the Bearcats with five shots, three on goal, while Esther Harder, Ashley Richards, and Haley Downey each took a shot for the Bruins, Downey with the only on-target attempt with 80 seconds left in the game.  Nicole Price made the save to preserve the Bearcats' shutout.

The Bruins were playing without First Team All-Conference forward Melanie Gaither and this year's leading scorer, midfielder Michelle Young, who were both injured in Wednesday's 4-0 win over Pacific University.  Gaither suffered an ankle injury that will keep her out about 10 days, while Young fell and sustained a broken wrist; she may return with a soft cast late in the season.

NEXT: George Fox (2-10-2, NWC 1-9) makes the eastern Washington swing next weekend, starting with Whitman College in Walla Walla on Saturday at 12:00 noon. ... Willamette (5-8-1, NWC 3-6-1) visits Linfield College in McMinnville, Ore., Sunday, also at 12:00 noon.