Deana Mendoza

2012 National Collegiate Club Championship Schedule & Results

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Emily Caise (So., Bradley, Ill.) scored three times to earn Player of the Game honors and lead No. 18 Lindenwood University to a 10-6 victory over No. 12 University of Oregon in the opening round of the 2012 National Collegiate Club Championship at Florida State University's Morcom Aquatic Center.

The Lions advance to face the winner of a first round game between No. 4 the University of Florida and No. 13 University of Texas on Saturday, May 5 at 10:10 a.m.  Oregon falls into the consolation bracket and will clash with the loser of the Texas-Florida contest at 6:20 p.m. this evening.

For Lindenwood, seven players posted single goals as Candice Cherry (Jr., Eagleville, Tenn.), Deana Mendoza (So., Beaumont, Calif.), Stacy Fischer (Sr., Orland Hills, Ill.), Gabrielle Thornton (So., Fisherville, Va.), Kayla Kutinac (Sr., Orland Park, Ill.), Christa Khatcherian (Jr., Buffalo Grove, Ill.) and Meghan Kopecky (So., Harare, Zimbabwe) as the Lions are now guaranteed to better their best finish in program history at Nationals.

In three previous trips to the tournament, Lindenwood tied for 15th (2007, 2008) and notched a tie for 13th place last season as the Lions are now guaranteed to finish no worse than eighth in the 16-team field.

Tied 3-3 at halftime, the Lions netted the winning margin in the third quarter as Caise (6:41), Khatcherian (6:10), Cherry (2:22) and Mendoza (1:21) comprised a 4-0 scoring run by Lindenwood to take a 7-3 lead.

Thornton (6:32) expanded the margin to 8-3 in the fourth quarter before Chantelle Savoie (Jr., Newbury Park, Calif.) moved Oregon back within 8-4 with a maker at 6:15.

The lead dropped to 8-5 at 4:34 when Savoie scored her second consecutive marker, but the Lions roared for back-to-back strikes by Kutinac (4:29) and Fischer (1:17) to make it 10-5 and cruise to the victory.

Crysta Deus (Fr., Napa, Calif.) and Savoie led the Ducks with pairs of goals as Oregon will post its lowest finish at the National Collegiate Club Championship over the past five years following third (2008), second (2009), fourth (2010, 2011), and fifth (2007) finishes since 2007.

Oregon Goals: Crysta Deus (2); Chantelle Savoie (2); Samantha Pruesner; Jeanette Lo

Lindenwood Goals: Emily Caise (3); Candice Cherry; Deana Mendoza; Stacy Fischer; Gabrielle Thornton; Kayla Kutinac; Christa Khatcherian; Meghan Kopecky

Saves: Oregon - Kelsey Fanshier (7) ; Lindenwood - Marlee Lyons (9, 21 minutes), Katie Tunney (1, 7 minutes)

Exclusions: Oregon - 8 ; Lindenwood - 9

Advantage Opportunities: Oregon - 3-for-9 ; Lindenwood - 1-for-8

Officials: Humberto Navarro, Kristin Stanford

University of Oregon's Samantha Pruesner (#4) battles with Lindenwood University's Christa Khatcherian