With a MPSF record of 4-5, the Oregon women’s lacrosse team secured the sixth and final spot in the MPSF playoffs that begin Thursday, April 28.
Oregon will play the No. 3 seed Colorado Buffaloes in the Ducks’ third straight postseason berth.
The Ducks fell to Colorado, 14-9, on Sunday. Although that was a tough loss for the Ducks, they plan to take what they’ve learned from the loss and prepare for the upcoming game.
Sophomore attacker Cambi Cukar is currently ranked second in the NCAA in assists with 46. She is focused on coming out strong in the first period in Oregon’s quarterfinal matchup against the Buffaloes.
“We just have to start from the beginning,” Cukar said. “We kind of got a deficit — it was 9-2 at one point, and that’s what really messed us up because we had to come back from that. But we’re going to start from the beginning and then get ‘em all 60 minutes.”
Head coach Jen Beck understands what her team needs to improve on the next time around.
“We just need to dig in, be a little grittier,” Beck said. “I thought we had a good shift when we changed the defense against Colorado — that got them thinking. What’s going to happen is they’re going to watch that film, so we have to be prepared for a new offence that they’re going to bring.”
Cukar looks forward to the rematch against the Buffaloes in her second MPSF playoff appearance.
“I’m actually excited,” Cukar said. “Because now we know how to beat them and we’re going to beat them when it matters.”
If the Ducks can defeat the Buffaloes on Thursday, they will continue on to play No. 2 seed Stanford on Friday. Earlier this month, when they played the Cardinal at home, the Ducks lost 14-2. Stanford is 8-1 in MPSF play, and 13-3 overall.
Win against Stanford, and the Ducks will move on to the Championship on Saturday.
If Oregon does make it to the championship, it will most likely face the No. 1 seed USC Trojans. The Trojans are undefeated this season with a record of 17-0. When the Ducks faced off against the Trojans in March, Oregon fell 17-4.
Two difficult teams lie in the way of Oregon capturing its second-ever MPSF championship, and first since 2012. Nonetheless, this Oregon team is confident and excited to redeem itself against Colorado on Thursday and continue on from there.
Follow Kylee O’Connor on Twitter @KyleeTheMightee