Box Score Photo Taken By: Jake Ryan
By: Ryan Lackey
PORTLAND, Ore. --- The Bruins drove up into Portland on Saturday afternoon to meet Lewis & Clark, and together the two sides constructed quite a display. Though the Bruins left with a 4-3 loss, the play on both ends was open, free-flowing, and – especially from an offensive perspective – extremely encouraging for the Bruins.
Recap:
They managed nine shots against a defensively solid Pioneers group that stands at 5-2-0. Emma Weme got off the block with her first goal of the season, and Savannah Moisan notched her team-leading fourth goal.
George Fox couldn't have hoped for a better start to the match: Ally Swanson made two fine saves in the first few minutes of play, and then released the Bruins on a counterattack. Hannah Harder and Kenna Meinhart both had shots parried well by Pioneers' keeper Kelley Koeppen, but Koeppen couldn't keep out the third effort from Weme, who pounced on the rebound and slid it into the far corner. Unfortunately for the Bruins, their lead was fleeting, and in the 17th minute Emily Thompson rolled a pass to Kylie Carera, who finished neatly. Just a minute later, the ball fell to Thompson at the top of the eighteen, and Thompson put her laces through the ball, firing a wonder strike into the top corner that Swanson was powerless to stop.
Suddenly down 2-1, the Bruins held fast, and Moisan rewarded the effort in moments. Perhaps inspired by Thompson, Moisan did her one better, placing a shot perfectly from 25 yards out beyond Koeppen to knot the match at 2-2.
After half, the Bruins found themselves chasing the game again, when Anna Thorndike, having just had a good shot saved by Swanson, jumped on a pass from Megan Ratfield and put the Pioneers up, 3-2. Still, down just a goal, the Bruins pushed to find an equalizer but were stymied; then, in the 76th minute, Thompson and Carera linked up again, as Thompson laid the ball off for Carera who finished smartly.
All was not lost, though, for the Bruins: seconds later, a disastrous own goal by the Pioneers left them vulnerable, and with a possibility of a 4-4 draw alive, the Bruins poured forward in the last ten minutes. Kenna Meinhart had a tremendous shot in the 85th minute saved spectacularly by Koeppen, and it would prove to be the Bruins' last; the 4-3 final held.
Top Performers:
Weme and Moisan got on the scoresheet for the Bruins, and Meinhart came close with two shots on goal; she also claimed an assist. Sarah Tuemmler also had a shot on goal. Swanson did well, making five saves.
What Comes Next:
The Bruins still stand at a hopeful 3-3-2 and 1-2-1 in the Northwest Conference after the day's play. Pacific Lutheran comes to Newberg on Sunday, and the Bruins will look to get back on the winning track.
