Cougs travel to the Beaver State

Sitting just outside Top 25, WSU now faces Oregon, Oregon State

HAILEE SPEIR

WSU forward Grayson Lynch (4) runs towards the goal during a college soccer match on Oct. 21, at the Lower Soccer Field in Pullman.

ERIN MULLINS, Evergreen reporter

WSU soccer, coming off of their last home match of the season, is set to play Oregon and Oregon State in some of their final Pac-12 matchups.

WSU currently has a 10-2-4 overall record and a 4-3-1 conference record. The Cougs are currently ranked fourth in the Pac-12.

In their last two matches, WSU came away neither victorious nor defeated as they earned two draws against two top 10 nationally-ranked teams, UCLA and USC. Head coach Todd Shulenberger said he was happy with the outcome of those two games. 

First, WSU will play Oregon at 7 p.m. Thursday in Eugene on Pape Field. Oregon currently has a 9-2-5 overall record and a 4-2-2 conference record. They are ranked fifth in the Pac-12. 

The Ducks’ last two matches went into double overtime but both ended undefeated. Oregon managed a 1-0 win over Utah and a 1-1 draw with Colorado. Junior forward Ally Cook scored the deciding goal for the Ducks 108 minutes into the match against the Utes. 

Before that, the Ducks walked away with a draw against Colorado after a tumultuous game. Colorado scored early on in the 14th minute, and it seemed like they were set to dominate until Cook once again scored the deciding goal and tied the match up in the 58th minute. 

Cook nearly scored another goal in the 102nd minute, but the ball deflected off the crossbar. 

WSU has a dominating 14-5-8 record against Oregon. The last game against the Ducks ended in a 1-1 draw after Oregon managed to score in the second period. 

“It’s a big weekend again,” Shulenberger said. “Down to the grind. Down to the last couple weekends here. Oregon’s a fantastic team; they have done a great job.” 

Oregon State currently has an 11-5-0 overall record and a 3-5-0 conference record. They are ranked ninth in the Pac-12. The Beavers will match up with the Cougs at noon on Sunday in Corvallis on the Paul Lorenz Field at Patrick Wayne Valley Stadium.

The Beavers are currently on a losing streak having conceded the past three games against Pac-12 contenders. The Beavers lost to the Buffs 2-3 in overtime, lost to the Utes 1-2 and lost to UCLA 1-4.

Freshman forward McKenna Martinez scored both goals for the Beavers in the game against Colorado to tie the match. Martinez nearly scored another goal at the beginning of overtime, but Colorado managed to score just a minute later to secure the victory.

WSU has a winning 17-10-3 record against Oregon State and is currently on a three-match win streak. The last game against the Beavers in April ended with a narrow 3-2 victory after Grayson Lynch scored the game-winning goal. 

“We know we’re in a good spot,” Shulenberger said. “We’re playing good soccer. We’re competing in every game, and I like our chances on the road. We have done a great job on the road.”

Do not miss out on the Cougar action and some of the last matches of the regular season. The matches can be viewed on the Pac-12 Network.