By: Evan O'Kelly, Associate Commissioner for Communications

Photography by: Ammon Teubner | Follow on Instagram

PORTLAND, Ore. – Perfection in the game of soccer is hard to come by and rarely lasts longer than an instant.
 
On Thursday afternoon in Monmouth, Ore., Lauren Rose found that instant of perfection in what proved to be the biggest moment of her Western Oregon collegiate career to this point.

 
Trailing No. 1 nationally-ranked Colorado Mines 1-0 in the 67th minute, the Wolves won a corner kick with Rose – a defender – trailing the play towards the top of the box.
 
WOU midfielder Ally Beavers did well to win possession in the corner after her initial service was cleared and sent another dangerous cross towards the six-yard box. Rose read the play masterfully and stood around 20 yards from goal in anticipation of another loose ball coming her way.
 
The next clearance took one big bounce inside the goal box, before Rose pounced on the opportunity. Her right foot met the ball just after a second small bounce, her laces smashing through a powerful volley strike that curled just under the crossbar and into the upper-left corner of the net. It was a pure laser with impeccable technique, and Mines goalkeeper Allie Lundgren never had a chance to get a finger on it. “That was probably one of greatest shots I’ve seen since I started working at Western Oregon,” said WOU head coach Kacey Bingham. “I am proud of her – that was a big moment in her career.”

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“Scoring that goal to tie up the game was such a surreal moment,” Rose said on her second-career goal. “Celebrating with my team and having that feeling of accomplishment is something I will never forget. This team is so special and I can’t wait to see what more we accomplish moving forward.”
 
The goal itself didn’t win the game for the Wolves, but it gave the team belief that it could come away with a result against the best team in Division II women’s soccer. Less than six minutes later, WOU newcomer Kaitlin Taylor made the belief into reality when she tucked away her first goal of the season. Beating a pair of defenders down the left side, the Cal State Fullerton transfer deftly put her left foot through a high-arcing shot that carried over the head of Lundgren and wound up in the far post side netting.
 
“She came into this team having high goals and is a player with a lot of confidence in herself and a lot of power,” said Bingham. “She knows what she is capable of and doesn’t back away from hard moments. She has hit that wide shot in almost every game we have played, and it led to a goal earlier this year. She is very good anywhere around 30 yards from goal, whether she is central or out wide. Kaitlin is always going to take her opportunity, is great with her right and left foot and we know she can get those balls on frame for us.”
 
 
The second goal prompted an even more spirited celebration than the first, but the match was far from over with nearly 18 minutes still left on the clock. Rose and a back line that featured the likes of fellow seniors Jada Foster, Leah Heugly, Emma Smith and Bella Lopez in goal held Mines to just one shot the rest of the match to see out a historic victory.
 
“Jada has been here almost as long as I have been here,” Bingham said on the first-team all-GNAC Foster, whose WOU career began in 2021. “She is someone who we rely on heavily because of what she provides leadership wise. Her defending skills are phenomenal, she is a fantastic 1-v-1 player and is a fantastic back line leader. The back line as a whole with Leah and Jada as a pair together has become very dynamic and dangerous. We added two seniors with Lauren and Emma, and having a full senior back line has been very impactful with Bella in goal as well. It has been great to see that group shining and playing with a lot of maturity.”
 
The second straight win for the Wolves lifted their record to 3-1-1 overall and earned them GNAC Team of the Week honors. Perhaps what stood out most to Bingham was the way her team responded after falling behind in the match. “We gained confidence in the first half – we had quite a bit of possession and shots,” Bingham said on the scoreless opening 45 minutes. “After going down, we had to stick to the game plan. Both goals came from seniors who have played a lot of college soccer. We have only lost one game, in which we weren’t able to come back and find a goal, so it was good to find resilience. You have to play until the last minute, and they were confident in themselves.”
 
The defeat Bingham referenced was a 1-0 setback against UC Merced on Sept. 11, the lone blemish among an otherwise strong start to the 2025 campaign. The Wolves will now turn their attention to the start of conference play, opening up against Montana State Billings (1-3) on Thursday at noon (Mountain) time in the Magic City. “As far as our returners, they understand the GNAC is a very competitive level,” Bingham said. “Anyone can win any game, and we are not naïve to it. Every game you play, you have to be prepared if you are going to have a chance to win. They understand that over these next seven weeks, every game needs to have our attention and preparedness to go in and get a result.”
 
 
WOU will begin pursuit of its third straight GNAC Championships berth, having made the tournament in each of the last two seasons. Bingham’s tenure, which began in 2019, has been a successful one, with her side finishing .500 or better in each of the last three campaigns and going 26-23-19 (.522) in GNAC matches since she began.
 
“We tried to focus a lot on prepping ourselves and making sure. We learned a lot in non-conference and every game new challenge. Used all that. Really prepared with gameplan. Wanted to make sure stick with our plan going into game. We know mines fantastic school and program. But knew we could match up with them. Similar to lot of GNAC teams we play. Have played great teams like WWU, SPU, SFU, felt because we knew that caliber of team, helped calm our nerves a bit. Great mindset, felt comfortable. Game really be disciplined with our gameplan, and execute at top level to compete with team like that.”
 
As for Rose, the goal coupled with her 90-minute defensive effort earned her first-career GNAC Defensive Player of the Week honor announced earlier on Monday. “Lauren is a player who has been in and out of playing time in her career and has been wanting a starting role,” Bingham said on Rose, who has come along way from playing just three minutes as a freshman in 2022. “She has not only stepped into that but also the captain role. She has put in the work, never took a day off and really battled to get this spot on the team. She came in as a forward and is a trusted player we have moved into the defensive line because of the leadership role and what she has been able to give back to the team. We knew she’s a goal scorer, and we want her in good position when a ball is going to come loose.”