By: Cody Wright
SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth women's soccer will close the 2026 season at home this weekend and honor its senior class on Sunday. The Bucs host Pacific Lutheran on Saturday and already-clinched NWC champion Puget Sound on Sunday's senior day. Both matches will begin at 1:45 pm as the second leg of a men's-women's doubleheader.
Check the Whitworth women's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action.
Watch on FloCollege: All of Whitworth's Northwest Conference athletic events will be streamed through FloCollege in 2026-27. Fans can sign up to watch Pirate sports on the FloCollege portal. Registration is $120 for an annual subscription or $25 per month. Those who register with a .edu email address get a significant discount.
The Pirates: Whitworth moved to 4-10-2 overall, 3-9-2 in the Northwest Conference after a loss and draw in its final road trip of the season.
The Pirates dropped Saturday's match 3-0 to Willamette. The Bearcats outshot the Bucs 19-5 and held Whitworth to just two shots on target. Willamette scored two goals in the first and netted one in the second, led by Claire Warthen who scored two of them and assisted the other. Five different Pirates recorded a shot and Karlee Roderick made five saves in net.
George Fox and Whitworth battled up and down the field on Sunday, but the match ended scoreless. Roderick made a huge save on a penalty kick to preserve the tie in the 71st minute. In the final minute, a breakaway scoring chance for Kayla Santa Monica was broken up on the other end. Ayanna Tobeck and Hailey Herboth led with three shots each and Roderick earned her fourth shutout.
Senior Sunday: Six Pirate seniors will play their final match at Whitworth Soccer Field on Sunday afternoon. Emma Ellerd, Andie Snell, Lauren Ellerd, Katherine Kent, Grace Hansen and Kaiti Low will be honored prior to kickoff for their contributions to Whitworth women's soccer.
The Opponents: Pacific Lutheran (11-3-4, 9-2-3 NWC) heads into this weekend fighting for a second-place finish. The Lutes have the second best scoring margin in Northwest Conference play (1.22) due to 25 goals scored and just eight allowed. Senior Liv Olson leads the attack with a team-high six goals and adds a pair of assists. Junior Tia Schwetz has five goals. Junior goalkeeper Mia Speir boasts a league-high .840 save percentage and 10 shutouts in 17 starts. PLU took down the Pirates 3-0 on October 11th in Tacoma. Whitworth hasn't beaten the Lutes since 2018.
Puget Sound (17-0-1, 14-0 NWC) clinched the 2026 NWC women's soccer title with a pair of wins last weekend. Having already secured a birth in the NCAA Tournament, the Loggers are playing for an unbeaten conference season heading into the final weekend. While PS has allowed the least amount of goals in conference play (4), the attack has been even more impressive, leading the conference in goals (43) and shots (285) by large margins. Sophomores Kate Short and Anya Dubios lead the attack, with Short leading the conference in goals (8) and Dubios leading the conference in points (19, seven goals, five assists). Senior goalkeeper Gianna Maldonado holds a NWC-best 0.21 goals against average in 18 starts. Puget Sound beat the Pirates 2-0 in Tacoma on October 10th.
The Coach: Whitworth soccer alum Cameron Bushéy is in his fifth season as head coach of the women's soccer team. The Pirates have a 33-38-22 record under Bushéy and a 29-31-16 mark in the Northwest Conference.
Bushey 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: The Whitworth women will be back in action next fall.
