By: Cody Wright
SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth women's soccer hits the road this week looking for its first win of the season. The Pirates will head to Walla Walla on Wednesday for battle with Whitman at 5:30pm before traveling to Oregon to visit Linfield on Sunday at noon.
Check the Whitworth women's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action.
The Pirates: Whitworth (0-2-3) fell to Willamette and tied with Pacific (Ore.) in its first weekend of Northwest Conference play.
On Saturday, Willamette scored two second half goals to grab a 2-1 win over the Pirates. The Bucs scored first in the 14th minute when Addison Dizard hooked a corner kick into the box that Sylvie Washington headed into the back of the net. Five minutes into the second half, the Bearcats scored off a corner themselves before netting the game-winner in the 80th minute. Karlee Roderick made fives saves for the Bucs.
The Pirates played to a scoreless draw on Sunday against Pacific. Whitworth outshot the Boxers 10-3 in the second half but were unable to find the back of the net. Despite three Pirate shots in the final five minutes, Pacific prevented Whitworth from extending its winning streak to six over the Boxers. Maia Santa Monica and Katherine Kent led the Pirate attack.
The Opponents: Whitman hosts Whitworth with a 2-1-3 overall record and 1-0-1 NWC record. The Blues played to a 1-1 draw against Pacific and beat Willamette 1-0 last weekend to open their NWC slate. Whitman is second in the conference with 12 goals scored and leads the league in shots on goal (46). Sophomore forward Bailey Bell leads the NWC with six goals. Senior defender Gracia Larson has a pair of goals and one assist. Sophomore goalkeeper Eleanor Johnson leads the team with a .907 save percentage in four starts. Whitworth swept the season series with Whitman last season with a pair of 1-0 wins.
Linfield (4-0-2 overall) is one of three NWC teams with a 2-0 conference record and the only team without a loss on the season heading into this week. The Wildcats have scored a league-leading 16 goals and average seven shots on goal per game. Their attack is led by senior midfielder Lize Rendon, who has four goals and one assist. Rendon has earned NWC women's soccer offensive Student-Athlete of the Week honors twice this season. Junior Alexa Fritz has started all six games in net for the Wildcats and has a .800 save percentage. The Pirates and Blues have split their season series each of the past two years.
Watch on FloCollege: Like the rest of the Northwest Conference, Whitworth's home athletic events will be steamed through FloCollege in 2025-26. Fans can sign up to watch Pirate sports on the FloCollege portal. Registration is $120 for an annual subscription or $20 per month. Those who register with a .edu email address get a significant discount.
The Coach: Whitworth soccer alum Cameron Bushéy is in his fourth season as head coach of the women's soccer team. The Pirates have a 26-22-15 record under Bushéy and a 24-17-9 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: Whitworth will make a trip to Oregon to visit George Fox and Lewis & Clark on October 4th and 5th.
