PORTLAND, Ore. – Six Lewis & Clark College women's lacrosse players were named to the 2025 All-Northwest Conference Team, the league office announced Tuesday, capping a landmark season for a program in just its second year of competition.
Sophomore defender Lauren Elliott earned First Team honors, while fellow sophomores Aviana Gonzales and Sage Swegle were named to the Second Team. Junior midfielder Kate Meinhard and first-year standouts Kaitlin McRae (goalkeeper) and Mack Searle (midfielder) earned Honorable Mention recognition.
The six selections mark a major milestone and reflect a dramatic rise for the Pioneers, who went from one win in their debut season to an 11-6 overall record in 2025. In their first year as members of the Northwest Conference, Lewis & Clark finished 4-4 in league play, narrowly missing a postseason berth after a preseason coin flip dictated tiebreaker procedures.
Elliott anchored the Pioneers' defense, starting all 17 games and setting new single-season program records with 36 caused turnovers and 56 ground balls. She ranked second in the conference in caused turnovers and third in ground balls. Her six caused turnovers against Linfield on April 16 tied both the program record and the third-highest total in the NWC this season. She added 17 draw controls while averaging 3.29 ground balls and 2.12 caused turnovers per game.
Gonzales, an attacker, started every contest and finished second on the team with 54 goals, ninth-most in the conference. She led the team with 28 assists—fifth in the NWC—and set new program records for assists and total points in a season with 82. Gonzales also broke single-game records with five assists and 11 points against the Milwaukee School of Engineering. Her season totals included 100 shots (83 on goal), 22 caused turnovers, 24 ground balls, nine draw controls, and two game-winning goals.
Swegle, also an attacker, paced both the Pioneers and the Northwest Conference with a program-record 71 goals. She scored in all 17 games and posted a career-high eight goals at Whitworth, tied for the third-highest single-game total in the conference. Swegle finished with 81 points and 10 assists, ranked second in both categories for Lewis & Clark and the NWC. She led the conference in total shots (143) and shots per game (8.41) and set program single-game marks with 15 total shots and 11 shots on goal against George Fox. Her all-around contributions also included 21 caused turnovers, 22 ground balls, 29 draw controls and two game-winners.
Meinhard finished fourth on the team in scoring with 33 goals and ranked second with 20 assists for a total of 53 points. She led the team in ground balls (42), ranked ninth in the NWC, and added 80 draw controls—third in the conference—while averaging 5.33 per game. Her 11 draw controls against Pacific tied for the second-highest single-game total in the NWC. Meinhard also notched nine free-position goals and two game-winners.
McRae started all 17 games in goal and delivered a breakout debut season. She posted a 10-6 record and set program single-season records for wins and saves (99). Her .430 save percentage ranked second in the conference, and she tied for third with 14 saves in a win over Wisconsin-River Falls. McRae's 10.86 goals against average and 723 minutes played each ranked fifth in the NWC. She also recorded four caused turnovers and collected 38 ground balls, fifth-most on the team.
Searle made an immediate impact as a two-way midfielder, finishing third on the team and 10th in the NWC with 49 goals. She added 14 assists to total 63 points and set a new program record with 81 draw controls. Searle also led the team with 26 caused turnovers and ranked second in ground balls with 43. She tallied a team-high five game-winning goals and converted 15 of 20 free-position attempts. Her seven ground balls and five caused turnovers against Linfield on Feb. 26 both tied for the second-most in a game by any NWC player this season.
