Carrying flowers with all smiles and some tears, the nine seniors on the roster for Oregon soccer were honored yesterday at Papé Field as the Ducks beat Oregon State 2-1.

“They are a good group,” said head coach Kat Mertz about the senior crew. “From the first minute meeting Bri Pugh and Abby Steele and knowing that they got some talent and some personalities and for them to really lower their guard a bit and trust what we were doing for the program and to buy in – it meant a lot for our team.”

It was senior Lily Archer that set up Oregon’s win, as she set up Ashlee Schulz for a goal after a free kick just outside the box.

“I just wanted to do it for all my teammates, I didn’t care if everyone but me scored,” said Archer. “I just wanted to end on a positive note for my fellow seniors and the team.”

At the end of the match, the team gathered together for the last time this season. Head coach Kat Mertz said it was a way to thank the seniors and look forward to next season.

“I know we are not playing next week in November and that was the goal but these seniors have really pushed us and it is a matter of the tipping point for us and to really talk to the young ones that now is our time and let’s enjoy this and let’s build off this success,” Mertz said. “We are going to see a lot of spots that are open, we started eight of those nine seniors”

For Pugh, after the game it was very emotional.

“When that final whistle blew, that’s kind of when it just hit,” Pugh said.

Pugh would tally the first goal for the Ducks in yesterday’s match, which gave her 27 points overall in her career, which puts her at ninth overall in school history for points.

“I wasn’t going to put pressure on myself to do it (score a goal) because it would never happen, but it was awesome to see the ball hit the back of the net,” Pugh said. “I don’t really pay attention to that stuff, but I guess looking back it will be nice to see that I was on the board.”

Follow Beth Maiman on Twitter @bethmaiman