Friday, April 19
Eugene, OR
8:00 PM
Colorado
3-14, 1-9
14
at
8
Oregon
9-6, 8-2
1
2
F
Colorado
7
7
14
Oregon
4
4
8
Senior Samantha Nemirov
Photo by: Gary Breedlove
Nemirov’s Four Goals Propels No. 23 Buffs Past Oregon
April 19, 2019 | Lacrosse
EUGENE, Ore. – University of Colorado senior Samantha Nemirov recorded four goals and one assist to help the lacrosse team to a 14-8 victory against the Oregon Ducks on Friday night.
Behind Nemirov, seniors Miranda Stinson and Sophie Castillo were second on the team with three points, as both tallied a pair of goals and one assist. In total, the Buffs had eight different goal scorers.
The 23rd-ranked Buffaloes finish the regular season with a 9-6 mark, and more importantly, were 8-2 in Pac-12 Conference play. Oregon is now 3-14 overall, 1-9 in the league.
"Not our prettiest game but I'm proud of the way we responded and kept fighting," head coach Ann Elliott Whidden said. "Oregon is playing very well right now and we knew it was going to be a battle for us. We are glad to get the win tonight."
WHAT HAPPENED: The Buffs got the scoring starting as Stinson netted a goal at 26:29. Oregon was able to even the game less than three minutes later, but a goal by Castillo at 22:02 put CU back up by one.
The Ducks were able to level the game again at 17:11, but this time Charlie Rudy had the answer for the Buffs, scoring less than a minute later (3-2). Chloe Willard put CU up by two just five minutes later after a quick pass from Nemirov (4-2).
Oregon broke up CU's run with another goal at 8:00, but the Buffs responded with three straight goals from Liz Phillips, Nemirov and a second by Stinson to go up 7-3. Colorado held a four-goal advantage with the clock ticking down in the half, but with seconds left in the half, Oregon scored its fourth marker of the day to cut CU's lead to three.
The second half started in favor of Oregon with the Ducks finding the back of the net just over 2 minutes into the half. But Colorado was able to respond as Nemirov was able to convert on a free-positon attempt at 24:25 to give the Buffs back their 3-goal lead.
The Ducks were not going away though and scored a pair of goals (22:35, 20:16) to bring the Buffs' lead to just one goal.
Colorado was able to capitalize on a fast break after an Oregon turnover. Stinson picked up the ground ball and raced down the field before she connected with Sadie Grozier, who was fouled right in front of the net. Grozier was able to convert on a free-position attempt, scoring her first of the game. A short time later, Jen Mistretta recorded her first free-position goal of the game, which was CU's 10th goal of the game and put the Buffs up by three.
The Buffs' attack kept coming. Castillo netted her second marker of the game at 12:38, forcing the Ducks to take a timeout. The break did not slow CU down as Rudy was able to convert on a free-position attempt with 9:14 remaining.
Oregon finally put an end to Colorado's scoring run with a goal of its own at 7:38, which was its first goal in close to 15 minutes.
CU was able to answer as Nemirov scored her third of the game, her 40th of the season, with 6:34 left off the feed from Stinson. She found the net for the fourth time of the night 90 seconds later, converting on the free-position attempt, which put the Buffs up 14-8.
Neither team would score the remainder of the period, giving CU the win heading into the conference tournament next week.
"As we head into next week, we know we have to tighten some things up," Whidden said. "Defensively we have to do a better job of preparing and being disciplined. We have to finish plays. We have talked about this over the last couple weeks and this week we will zero in on it as we prepare for the Pac-12 tournament."
KEY STATISTICS: The Buffs led in most of the stat categories. CU had the edge in draw controls (16-8), as well as shots (37-16), shots on goal (24-12) and caused turnovers (8-4). Colorado also converted on 8-14 free-position attempts and held Oregon to just 2-of-4.
NOTABLE:
TEAM LEADERS:
Behind Nemirov, seniors Miranda Stinson and Sophie Castillo were second on the team with three points, as both tallied a pair of goals and one assist. In total, the Buffs had eight different goal scorers.
The 23rd-ranked Buffaloes finish the regular season with a 9-6 mark, and more importantly, were 8-2 in Pac-12 Conference play. Oregon is now 3-14 overall, 1-9 in the league.
"Not our prettiest game but I'm proud of the way we responded and kept fighting," head coach Ann Elliott Whidden said. "Oregon is playing very well right now and we knew it was going to be a battle for us. We are glad to get the win tonight."
WHAT HAPPENED: The Buffs got the scoring starting as Stinson netted a goal at 26:29. Oregon was able to even the game less than three minutes later, but a goal by Castillo at 22:02 put CU back up by one.
The Ducks were able to level the game again at 17:11, but this time Charlie Rudy had the answer for the Buffs, scoring less than a minute later (3-2). Chloe Willard put CU up by two just five minutes later after a quick pass from Nemirov (4-2).
Oregon broke up CU's run with another goal at 8:00, but the Buffs responded with three straight goals from Liz Phillips, Nemirov and a second by Stinson to go up 7-3. Colorado held a four-goal advantage with the clock ticking down in the half, but with seconds left in the half, Oregon scored its fourth marker of the day to cut CU's lead to three.
The second half started in favor of Oregon with the Ducks finding the back of the net just over 2 minutes into the half. But Colorado was able to respond as Nemirov was able to convert on a free-positon attempt at 24:25 to give the Buffs back their 3-goal lead.
The Ducks were not going away though and scored a pair of goals (22:35, 20:16) to bring the Buffs' lead to just one goal.
Colorado was able to capitalize on a fast break after an Oregon turnover. Stinson picked up the ground ball and raced down the field before she connected with Sadie Grozier, who was fouled right in front of the net. Grozier was able to convert on a free-position attempt, scoring her first of the game. A short time later, Jen Mistretta recorded her first free-position goal of the game, which was CU's 10th goal of the game and put the Buffs up by three.
The Buffs' attack kept coming. Castillo netted her second marker of the game at 12:38, forcing the Ducks to take a timeout. The break did not slow CU down as Rudy was able to convert on a free-position attempt with 9:14 remaining.
Oregon finally put an end to Colorado's scoring run with a goal of its own at 7:38, which was its first goal in close to 15 minutes.
CU was able to answer as Nemirov scored her third of the game, her 40th of the season, with 6:34 left off the feed from Stinson. She found the net for the fourth time of the night 90 seconds later, converting on the free-position attempt, which put the Buffs up 14-8.
Neither team would score the remainder of the period, giving CU the win heading into the conference tournament next week.
"As we head into next week, we know we have to tighten some things up," Whidden said. "Defensively we have to do a better job of preparing and being disciplined. We have to finish plays. We have talked about this over the last couple weeks and this week we will zero in on it as we prepare for the Pac-12 tournament."
KEY STATISTICS: The Buffs led in most of the stat categories. CU had the edge in draw controls (16-8), as well as shots (37-16), shots on goal (24-12) and caused turnovers (8-4). Colorado also converted on 8-14 free-position attempts and held Oregon to just 2-of-4.
NOTABLE:
- Samantha Nemirov extended her school record point scoring-streak to 35 games
- The Buffs lead the all-time series 9-0
- CU is 6-0 on the road this season
- With the win, Colorado secured a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament
TEAM LEADERS:
| Colorado |
| Points: 18 |
| Goals: 14 |
| Assists: 4 |
| Draw Controls: 16 |
| Ground Balls: 20 |
| Saves: 4 |
| Oregon |
| Points: 12 |
| Goals: 8 |
| Assists: 4 |
| Draw Controls: 8 |
| Ground Balls: 13 |
| Saves: 10 |
UP NEXT: The Buffaloes will return to Eugene for the Pac-12 Tournament, April 25-28. The tournament bracket will be released on Saturday, April 20.
QUOTEABLE:
Head Coach Ann Elliott Whidden
General Statement
Not our prettiest game but I'm proud of the way we responded and kept fighting. Oregon is playing very well right now and we knew it was going to be a battle for us. We are glad to get the win tonight.
What needs to improve heading into the Pac-12 Tournament
As we head into next week, we know we have to tighten some things up. Defensively we have to do a better job of preparing and being disciplined. We have to finish plays. We have talked about this over the last couple weeks and this week we will zero in on it as we prepare for the Pac-12 tournament.
On the offense
Offensively we could have been a little cleaner but I'm proud of our growth the last couple weeks as a whole. We have to continue to get better, continue to have more people step up as we move towards the tournament.
On draw controls
I thought Kate did a great job on the draws tonight with Anna and Miranda. That has to be a focus for us moving forward. I'm proud of our response after last weekend struggling a lot verse Stanford and Cal.
Team Stats
COLO
ORE
Shots
37
16
Turnovers
13
20
Caused Turnovers
8
4
Draw Controls
16
8
Free-Position Shots
16
4
Ground Balls
20
13
Game Leaders
Players
G
4
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
G
2
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
1
G
2
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
4
CT
2
Players Mentioned
A
/ Lacrosse
A
/ Lacrosse
M
/ LacrosseA
/ Lacrosse
M
/ LacrosseA
/ LacrosseA
/ Lacrosse
A
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