Sept. 3, 2016 Box Score
ROHNERT PARK, Calif. - The Western Washington men's soccer team battled to a scoreless tie after two overtime periods against Sonoma State in a non-conference match on Saturday evening at Seawolf Soccer Field.
WWU (1-0-1) collected its second consecutive shutout with the draw against Sonoma State (0-0-2) after blanking Chico State, 1-0, in the season opener on Thursday.
The Vikings held the Seawolves scoreless despite playing a man down for a significant portion of the second half and both overtime periods. Senior defender Brady Ulen (Coeur d'Alene, ID/Post Falls/North Idaho College) was issued a red card in the 78th minute but the WWU defense held strong from that point forward and allowed only two shots (none on goal) from Sonoma State for the remainder of the match.
"I'm actually happy with the result" said head coach Greg Brisbon. "We went a man down in the second half and we had to adjust. Sonoma is a very good team and I'm just proud of the guys that they battled. We did create some chances, but we got the draw and we are going to prepare for the next two games."
Junior goalkeeper Tyler Visten (Mount Vernon, WA/Skagit Valley College) made 2 saves for the Vikings.
WWU held a slight edge in shots (12-10) and shots on goal (3-2). Defensive efforts from both teams limited high-percentage scoring opportunities.
"Both teams did a really good job of that (defensively)," said Brisbon. "Both teams are very similar. We battled and just had solid defense with the back four and our holding midfielder, and then Tyler (Visten) had another great game for us."
The Vikings will play their home opener on Thursday, September 8, hosting Metro State (4 pm) at Harrington Field. WWU closes out the non-conference schedule with home contests against Colorado Christian (Sept. 10, 7 pm) and Fort Hays State (Sept. 15, 7 pm) before opening GNAC play at Saint Martin's on September 22.
