Sports Editor:
Adam Jude
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Assistant Sports Editor:
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‘do
Best Bet
NHL: Colorado at Pittsburgh,
5p.m., ESPN
Wednesday, October 3,2001
Offensive
■The soccer team has
vastly improved this season
and no area has benefited
as much as the offense
By Peter Hockaday
Oregon Daily Emerald
Suddenly, soccer.
After years of weak-as-wa
ter offense, under-seige de
fense and battered goalkeep
ing, the Oregon soccer team
has found its boots this fall.
The result? A 5-1-1 record,
the best start in school history,
and a victory over a top-25
team with another top-ranked
foe — No. 4 Portland — com
ing to Eugene today at 3 p.m.
“As much as last year was
one step backward, we’re now
taking two steps forward,”
Oregon head coach Bill Stef
fen said.
While the entire Oregon
squad has lifted off, no im
provement is as visible as the
Ducks’ offense. Oregon scored
eight goals in victories over
No. 19 San Diego and Eastern
Washington last weekend and
has already scored 17 goals on
the season. The Ducks’ season
record is 27.
Steffen said the offense is
benefiting from the improved
play of the entire team.
“The entire team is playing
offense,” Steffen said. “We’re
attacking with 11 players.”
The new Oregon offense
must have opponents cringing
at the names and goal totals.
Freshman Nicole Garbin has
“The entire team
is playing offense.
We’re attacking
with 11 players. ”
BiM Steffen
Oregon head coach
five goals, including a school
record four game-winners. Se
nior Chalise Baysa — Ore
gon’s all time leading
goal-scorer — has four this
season. Senior Beth Bowler
has three. Sophomore Ann
Westermark has three assists
and one goal.
Garbin describes the team’s
new killer instinct in terms of
history, despite her newcom
er status.
“In the past, they haven’t
done so well,” Garbin said.
“Now they want to beat teams
7-0, 8-0.”
Baysa is the star-of-all-stars
for Oregon. She holds all of
the school’s major offensive
records, and she is the focus
of opposing defenses. Among
Baysa’s Oregon records are ca
reer goals, career points, sea
son goals, goals in a game, ca
reer game-winning goals and
games played in a season.
Garbin is the star for the fu
ture. The freshman has scored
a goal in four of Oregon’s five
wins, and notched an assist in
the one game she didn’t net a
goal in. When Garbin gets a
point, Oregon is 5-0-0 this
season; when she doesn’t
score, the Ducks are 0-1-1.
“Nicole is a great player,”
Westermark said.
Bowler is the up-and-com
ing star, as a senior. A forward
trapped in a midfielder’s
body, Bowler has taken every
chance she’s been given to fire
away this season, and the re
sults have been three goals
and two assists. Bowler leads
the team in shots, with 27,
and also ranks among the Pa
cific-10 Conference leaders in
that category, after she took
only 29 shots all last season.
“I’m just trying to finish
strong,” said Bowler, who
echoed the sentiments of the
team when she said the Ducks
have a goal of their first
Turn to Soccer, page 12
Photos by Adam Amato Emerald
Kick started by an explosive offense, the Oregon soccer team is off to its best start ever at 5-1 -1. Pictured above: Chalise
Baysa (2) and Nicole Garbin (top left); Garbin (middle left); Ann Westermark and Elise Minvielle (bottom left)- Beth
Bowler (top right); Crystal David (middle right); Garbin and Bowler (bottom right).
Redshirt freshman receiver sparkles in starters’ absences
■Oregon needed ayoung
receiver to step in and make
an impact Saturday, and Keith
Allen proved to be the one
By Jeff Smith
Oregon Daily Emerald
First, starting wide receiver Ja
son Willis went down with a con
cussion.
Then, the other starter, Keenan
Howry, was sent to the sidelines
for the rest of the game after suffer
ing a rib contusion late in the first
half.
And just like that, all eyes were
on redshirt freshman Keith Allen.
Granted, the setting Saturday
night was Romney Stadium in Lo
gan, Utah, and not the Rose Bowl
in Pasadena, but it was still a big
spot for a young wide receiver en
tering Oregon’s game against Utah
State with only one career recep
tion.
With the team’s leading re
ceivers out for the rest of the
game, Oregon head coach Mike
Bellotti approached Allen and
told, him to be ready.
“He walked up to me and said,
‘Hey, you gotta’ go out there and
make plays. Go do what you have
to do,’ ’’Allen said.
One would imagine that the but
terflies began multiplying in
Allen’s stomach as he stepped onto
the field, but Allen said they didn’t
stay in there for long.
“I was a little nervous when I first
got in there, but after the first
catch, it kind of went away,” Allen
said. “I wasn’t surprised at all by
my catches. It just felt good to be
out there.”
Allen, who was the offensive
scout team’s player of the week
twice last season, was Oregon’s
leading receiver Saturday after
pulling in four catches for 92 yards.
“It gave me a lot of confidence
because I got to see what I could do
out there,” Allen said. “I really did
n’t know because I hadn’t really got
the chance. I was just waiting my
turn this whole season and the time
came and I went in there and
stepped it up. It felt great.”
Bellotti said Tuesday that Willis
has fully recovered from his con
cussion and will play this week
Tu'rnib Hdbtball,. page . 7.
Adam Amato Emerald