SPOKANE, Wash. - Whitworth University will take its perfect start south to Oregon to take on Willamette University and George Fox University this weekend. The Pirates are hoping to extend the 5-0 start to their season that includes a 2-0 record in the Northwest Conference.

Plumb led the Pirates in scoring last week

Rising in the Rankings: Depending on where you look, the Pirates are either a team on the rise or are holding steady. Whitworth is ranked 13th in the D3kicks.com national poll, up five spots from the previous week. The Pirates are also rated #1 in the west on D3kicks.com, and that rating is based on the same computer algorithms the NCAA uses to calculate Strength of Schedule rankings.

Whitworth remains 22nd in the NSCAA/adidas Division III poll, the same position the Pirates held last week. Whitworth also remains fourth in the NCAA west region poll, published by the NSCAA, the same spot the Pirates were in a week ago.

Plundering Opponents: Whitworth has been strong, both offensively and defensively, so far this fall. The Pirates have outscored opponents 22-2. Whitworth's defense has not only limited the goals, but also the shots, with a 47-16 shots on goal advantage so far this year.

Kaylyn Plumb (Fr., D, Spokane, Wash.) led the Pirates offensively last week with a pair of goals and an assist.

Missing Rohde: Whitworth's leading scorer, Emily Rohde (Fr., F, Lake Oswego, Ore.) suffered a sprained ankle in Saturday's 2-0 win over Pacific and will miss this weekend's matches in Oregon. Rohde has six goals and one assist this season and ranks second in the Northwest Conference with 13 total points.

Coming Up Next: Whitworth will play at Willamette on Saturday and at George Fox on Sunday, both at Noon with men's matches following.

Willamette is 1-3 so far this season and 0-2 in the NWC. The Bearcats, long one of the traditional powers in the Northwest, have already lost more games this season than all of last year. Willamette opened NWC play last week with a 3-1 loss at George Fox and a 3-2 loss at highly-ranked Puget Sound. Last season the Bearcats swept Whitworth, winning 3-1 in Spokane and 1-0 in Salem, Oregon.

George Fox is 4-1 overall and 2-0 in the NWC this season and moving up the NCAA west region rankings, where they are currently 8th in the poll released this week by the NSCAA. After the Bruins defeated Willamette 3-1 at home last week, they went on the road and won 1-0 at Pacific Lutheran. Last season Whitworth took a pair of 2-0 victories against George Fox.

Head Coach: Sean Bushey is 95-82-15 in his 11th year leading the Whitworth women. During that time he has also served as the Pirate men's coach.