Future investment banker Becca Katzen earned the win in her first career start last week, and leads the Ducks against visiting San Diego State on Saturday at noon.

In the 2017 season opener for Oregon lacrosse last weekend, the Ducks' investment in senior goalkeeper Becca Katzen paid big dividends.

Katzen, making her first career start, had nine saves as the Ducks beat Michigan, 11-8, in their debut under coach Katrina Dowd . Katzen earned her first career victory, and MPSF defensive player of the week honors in the process.

A career reserve with 15 appearances under her belt, Katzen was tabbed to start in net for Oregon this season soon after Dowd and her assistants were hired. Their confidence was rewarded Saturday, when Katzen made a save on the game's opening possession, one of five she had during a 3-0 explosion by the Ducks in the game's first 10 minutes.

"She's been working hard and she had an awesome week of practice, so we were feeling really confident," said assistant coach Michelle Tumolo , who works with Katzen and freshman backup Maddie Clark . "It's a huge position, so if you're having an off day it can be hard. But she was definitely on. We couldn't have asked for a better performance."

Katzen and the Ducks will be back in action this Saturday, in their MPSF opener against San Diego State on Papé Field at noon. Oregon has a quick turnaround before hosting Canisius on Monday at 1 p.m.

Tumolo and Katzen have put in countless hours together to prepare the senior goalkeeper for her new full-time role. Among the drills they do is what Tumolo calls her "Serena Williams impression" – using a racquet to quickly pepper Katzen with tennis balls, honing the speed of her hand movement.

That level of preparation, which helped set the stage for Katzen's breakout starting debut against Michigan, has served her well off the field, too. Katzen, a business major with an emphasis in finance, spent last summer in New York City as an intern for RBC Capital Markets, and has accepted a full-time position with the investment bank once she graduates this spring.

Katzen's father, Brett, is an eye surgeon and amateur investor whose discussions about the stock market around the dinner table first stoked Katzen's interest as a child. As a student at Dulaney High in Baltimore County, Md., Katzen took a finance class in which she had the chance to manage $100,000 in imaginary money in the stock market; though she doesn't recall how much it grew, she definitely turned a profit, she said.

As a sophomore, Katzen joined the University of Oregon Investment Group, which offers real-life experience managing portfolios. "I was like, I want to do that; I want to work on Wall Street," she said. "So I'm excited to say I did it."

For college students looking to enter the field, the most stressful element of the transition can be securing an internship, which typically leads to a full-time job with the same firm assuming all goes well. For Katzen, that application process took place in Fall 2015. In one week of that term, she flew to New York for an interview, returned to Eugene at midweek, flew back to New York for another interview and then caught a direct flight to California to meet the Ducks for one of their fall-ball games.

That frantic process paid off in the internship last summer with RBC Capital Markets. Upon its conclusion in mid-August, Katzen returned to Eugene and resumed feverish preparations to start in goal for the Ducks this year, after backing up Jenna Morris last season.

"As soon as I finished work, I hit the ground running as far as getting in shape, picking up a stick and picking back up where we'd left off as a team," Katzen said.

Thanks to that preparation, Katzen hit the ground running to open the 2017 season, too. Michigan won the opening draw Saturday, then worked the ball on offense until just a few seconds remained in the new 90-second shot clock. Katzen thus had the benefit of knowing the Wolverines needed to force a shot before the clock hit zero, and the Ducks largely used a zone defense in the opener that also made Michigan's angles of attack somewhat predictable.

Still, it was incumbent upon Katzen to make the save, and she did on the opening possession, which Oregon quickly parlayed into the game's first goal.

"To have that first save, it helps set the tone of the game," Katzen said. "You feel more confident – all right, I did that, keep it going. Seeing that in myself, in my first full game, seeing that I can have such an impact, it makes me really excited and confident that I can do it again. I can help us win games."

Tumolo said the aim moving forward for Katzen will be to carry over the confidence she built in the opener, without getting too comfortable. The bar has been set, and the Ducks want to see Katzen play at that level again and again.

"All we can ask of her is just to perform like she did this past Saturday," Tumolo said, "and we'll be good to go."