Lacrosse defends win streak in overtime against Oregon


Over the weekend, the No. 12 USC women’s lacrosse team enjoyed its third consecutive win against Oregon State at McAlister Field on Sunday. After a hard-fought battle, USC was left on top by a score of 9-8.

Junior midfielder Emily Conciali (left) passes to sophomore attacker Izzy McMahon (right). Conciali missed her 2017 season due to an injury. Wanting He | Daily Trojan

The Women of Troy continued their winning streak by overcoming Oregon in overtime. The game-winning goal was netted by sophomore midfielder Kerrigan Miller, who drew a foul in overtime and led the team to a victorious win. Miller has proven to be a strong asset for the Women of Troy, scoring 20 points so far in the 2018 season.

In the first five minutes of the game against the Ducks, the Trojans put 3 points on the scoreboard. This was an ambitious start for USC, which had a strong first-half performance against Oregon last year as well.   

Oregon put up a solid fight. The Ducks scored 3 goals in 61 seconds during the first half, 2 of those goals from free position. With 17 minutes on the clock in the second half, neither team could find the back of the net until Oregon’s Shannon Williams tied the score at 7.

USC sophomore attacker Hope Anhut scored with seven minutes left on the clock. Her efforts put USC on top with little time remaining. Nonetheless, Oregon’s senior defender Jill Zubillaga scored for the Ducks, tying the score with just eight seconds left on the clock, forcing the game into overtime.

The game would remain knotted in overtime until Miller netted the game-winning goal with a mere 51 seconds on the clock.

The victorious win advanced the women’s lacrosse team to 33-9 all-time at McAlister Field. The overtime win against Oregon marked the first time that USC has ever played in back-to-back overtime games.    

Senior goalie Gussie Johns, who has previously received the Pac-12 Player of the Week honor, had eight saves, six ground balls and caused three turnovers against the Ducks. Johns has had a total of 66 saves this season.

The women’s lacrosse team emphasized the importance of continuing to work on their defense and communication on the field during practice. The team has attributed its success to improving not only as a team but also as individual players.

“Our goal during every practice is to keep improving and working on our own personal goals,” Johns said. “We want to fix things from past games and continue to move forward as a team.”

Up next, the women’s lacrosse team will defend their winning streak against Cal this Friday. The Golden Bears have recently fallen to Oregon and Colorado, both of which are teams that USC has defeated 9-8 and 8-7, respectively.

The game against Cal, whom USC beat last year 21-4, will conclude the first half of the Pac-12 season for the Trojans.