Oregon Welcomes No. 20 USC in Home Finale

EUGENE, Ore - The Ducks host their home finale and senior day on Sunday as they take on the No. 20 USC Trojans.

Oregon has found winning form late in the season after earning consecutive come-from-behind victories the past two weekends. The Trojans are coming off a 16-13 win over Colorado to maintain their lead atop the Pac-12 Conference.

GAME INFO
When: Sunday, April 16
Where: Papé Field
Time: 12 p.m. PT
Watch: https://bit.ly/LAXVideo
Live Stats: https://statb.us/b/457131

THE DUCKS vs. THE TROJANS
USC comes to Eugene for Oregon's final home game of the 2023 season. In the first meeting between the sides this year, the Trojans prevented Oregon from gaining any serious offensive rhythm in a 14-4 defeat for the Ducks. USC has gotten the better of the overall series, with Oregon 3-11 in program history against Trojans. The last win for the Ducks in this matchup came on April 8, 2018, in an 18-11 upset at Papé Field.

DUCKS EARN FIRST PAC-12 WIN OF THE SEASON
Oregon found itself in a 6-0 deficit nearly 25 minutes into play. A strong final five minutes in the second from Morgan McCarthy gave the junior her sixth hat trick of the season and ignited the Duck squad out of the break. Alyssa Wright took command in the fourth, leading the Ducks to victory behind two goals and one assist, contributing on Oreogn's final three goals of the game.

» Sophomore Lauren Rismani recorded three assists in a game for the third time this season.
» Margot Hotham caused a career-high four turnovers while scooping up four ground balls.
» Haley Cummins was a force in the draw circle for Oregon, finishing the day with six draw controls and giving the Ducks a 10-5 advantage in the second half

SENIOR SERVICE
A contingent of upperclassmen anchors the Oregon defense. Three graduate students and one senior have combined for 41 starts throughout the 2023 season.

» Graduate student Logan Gierke has started all 64 games played in her UO career and earned the first Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week award for any Oregon defender since joining the conference. On Feb. 14, the captain caused four turnovers and picked up five ground balls in a victory over Xavier. Gierke second among UO players with 10 caused turnovers.
» Graduate transfer Margot Hotham has started every game for the Ducks after spending her first four seasons at Temple. The Pennsylvania native leads the team in ground balls (21) and caused turnovers (12). The defender secured her first career game with multiple draw controls against Colorado, matched a career-high with six ground balls against UC Davis and caused a career-best four turnovers in the win over Arizona State.
» Senior Lexie Likins has started every game and has the third most starts among active Ducks with 32. The captain scooped up a career-best five ground balls on Feb. 26, against Kennesaw State and is tied for second on the team with 17.
» Graduate transfer Maggie Flynn has gotten the starting nod in the Ducks' last five games. Flynn was a second-team All-Atlantic 10 and team captain after starting 32 games at Duquesne. The Pennsylvania native has caused three turnovers in each of the Ducks' last two wins.

SOPHOMORE SURGE
After losing 110 goals from last year's offense, Oregon turned to a young core for an attacking boost. The Ducks have found production from a trio of sophomores who have helped facilitate the offense this season.

» Gabby Cleveland is second on the team in goals (27) and is second in points (28). The Charlotte, N.C. native became the third player under head coach Chelsea Hoffmann with two five-goal games in a season, with a career-high six goals on March 19, against then No. 18 Stanford and a five-goal performance on April 1, against Colorado. She leads Oregon in goals and points in Pac-12 play (18).
» Lauren Rismani ranks third on the team in points (26) and paces the Ducks with 18 assists, the most by an Oregon player in a season since 2019. The Denver native opened the season with six consecutive multi-point games and has five multi-assist games, with five three-point outings.
» Haley Taylor is second on the Ducks in assists (9) and fourth in goals (11), tied for a fourth-best 20 points. Taylor became just the third Duck and first Oregon player since 2021 to bring home Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors after starting her first career game on Feb. 26, against Kennesaw State. The Sandy, Utah native finished with her first career hat trick and multi-assist game for five points against the Owls.