MCMINNVILLE, Ore. – Linfield University avenged a 1-0 loss in Spokane earlier this season with a dominant 4-0 win over visiting Whitworth in a Northwest Conference women's soccer match on Friday night at Linfield Soccer Complex.
The Pirates fell to 2-7 in conference play (3-8 overall) while the Wildcats moved to 7-5-1 overall and 5-4 in the NWC.
Linfield netted the game's first goal in the eighth minute after McKenzie Heckman worked the ball toward the goal line and scored from a tight angle outside the box. Seven minutes later, the Wildcats added another in similar fashion, this time on the left side from Sydney Garner. Lize Rendon poked in a cross from Heckman to push the lead to three just after the 18-minute mark. Julia Alvarez added on in the 65th minute.
The Pirates struggled to move the ball into their attacking third against an aggressive Wildcat defense, resulting in no shot attempts in the first half. They turned up the intensity and fared better in the second frame. Kaiti Low spearheaded the effort, recording all three Pirate shots on goal, including a quality one-on-one chance in the box that was saved in the 77th minute.
Karlee Roderick made five saves in the 90-minute effort at goalkeeper.
Maddy France and Garner led the Wildcats with three shots each. Goalkeeper Maddie Funk made three saves in net.
The Pirates will look to bounce back on Sunday at Lewis & Clark.
