SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth women's soccer team will open its Northwest Conference schedule this weekend with a pair of home matches.  Whitworth hosts Willamette on Saturday and Lewis & Clark on Sunday.  Both matches will start at noon.    

Links to live video and live statistics are available on the Whitworth women's soccer schedule.

The Pirates:  Whitworth (0-2-1) played a scoreless draw against Eastern Oregon last Thursday.  The Mountaineers were ranked #22 in the NAIA at the time.  Faith Rempfer made five saves in her first start as a Pirate goalkeeper.  EOU finished with a 19-6 edge in shots, but possession was even. 

Whitworth's match with Providence was canceled after the visiting school decided not to travel to Spokane because of health concerns.

The Buck (Ball) Stops Here:  Senior GK Kate Nelson played all 1860 minutes as the only goalkeeper on the roster in 2021, leading all of NCAA Division III in goalie minutes played.  She led the NWC in saves per game (4.90), was second in save percentage (.838) and third in goals-against average (0.919).  She was second in the NWC and fifth in NCAA Division III in shutouts (10).  Nelson was named second team All-Northwest Conference.

The Opponents: Willamette comes into Saturday's match 2-1.  The Bearcats traveled to Southern California last weekend and defeated La Verne 1-0 before losing 4-2 to Whittier.  Willamette finished 5-15 overall and 4-12 in the NWC in 2021.  The Pirates split with the Bearcats, winning 3-1 in Spokane but losing 3-0 in Oregon.

Lewis & Clark is 0-2-1 in 2022, heading into a match against Whitman on Saturday.  The Pioneers have not played an official match since Labor Day weekend and are on the hunt for their first goal of the season.  L&C went 11-6-3 overall and 9-5-2 in the NWC last fall.  The Pioneers defeated the Pirates 2-0 in Portland before the teams played to a 2-2 draw in Spokane.

The Coach:  Whitworth soccer alum Cameron Bushey is in his first season as head coach of the women's soccer team.  He came from Stanislaus State, where he was the top assistant coach.  Bushey has club coaching stints in Spokane and Colorado and he was an assistant at Gonzaga University for two seasons (2018-19).  He graduated from Whitworth in 2012 as a four-time All-NWC honoree who helped lead the Pirates to three NWC titles and NCAA Division III tournament appearances in 2008 and 2009.

Coming up:  Whitworth will travel to George Fox and Pacific (Ore.) on September 24-25.