The United Soccer Coaches released the latest high school rankings on Tuesday, September 5th, and Jesuit Women’s Varsity Soccer is ranked number three in the nation.
The Crusaders are led by senior co-captain, Abigail Cox, and junior co-captain, Sophia Stiles, and they have high expectations to repeat as State Champions. Furthermore, the team is steeped in young talent, including six sophomores and three freshmen, and that bodes well for a strong future.
To recap the season so far, Jesuit started strong with a 4-0 win over Ida B. Wells. Crusader goals were scored by Jo Frischknecht ‘26 and Natalie Webber ‘27, and Riley Weaks ‘27 who scored twice.
The dominance continued in their second game, when the Crusaders rolled to a 9-1 win over Cleveland. Goals came from Riley Jeffries ‘25, Claudia Rose ‘25, and Natalie Webber ‘27, while Lane Lee ‘26, Jo Frischknecht, and Abigail Cox each scored twice.
In the next game against a stronger opponent in Camas, Jesuit easily won 5-0. Goals continued to come from multiple different players including Kaitlyn MacLennan ‘25, Marian Dunne ‘26, and Claudia Rose who each scored once, and Abigail Cox who netted two.
With two shutouts in three games, Jesuit is clearly as strong on the defensive end. When asked about this year’s defensive group.
“It is a very young group, but I have a lot of confidence in them, and they have proven themselves to be up for the task,” goalkeeper senior Lauren Butorac said.
As returning state champs, Jesuit would be expected to feel pressure.
Captain Abigail Cox knows about high expectations.
“One of the things talked about at the beginning of our season was to ‘write our own story.’ As a team we are looking to not only build on the legacy, but to also add a new amazing chapter.”
Senior Kaitlyn MacLennan looks forward to the season.
“We have started off strong and are improving with every game. I feel we have a very strong team this year, and we will continue to find success.”
The Crusaders will travel to Bend next where they will face Summit on Friday, September 8th at 4 pm.
