BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Late-game heroics again lifted the No. 9 nationally-ranked Western Washington University women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory.
This time junior forward Jenna Killman scored with 31 seconds remaining in regulation to defeat West Region rival Sonoma State on a stormy Thursday night in non-conference play at Harrington Field.
Killman (Olympia, WA/Univ. of New Mexico) was in the right place at the right time after the Vikings threatened several times late in the contest. Freshman midfielder Libby Hielkema (Lynden, WA/Lynden Christian) took a long-range shot that caromed off the hands of SSU goalkeeper Ashley Morton, with Killman putting the rebound away from short distance for the late game-winner at the 89:29 mark.
The Vikings grew stronger as the game went on, fending off a strong performance by the Seawolves. WWU senior midfielder Jordyn Bartelson (Puyallup, WA) found a loose ball in the box early in the 74th minute, but her strong shot hit the far post to keep the game tied 0-0.
WWU continued to pressure SSU late in the game, with a Morton coming up with big saves in the 82ndminute on a shot by senior forward Karli White (North Bend, WA/Mount Si/Seattle U.) and in the 86thminute by Grace Eversaul (Vancouver, WA/Skyview).
"It makes for good drama with these late-game goals…and I think it really builds confidence that we played to the final whistle," said 17th-year WWU head coach Travis Connell. "We are super happy with the result. These are great games against Sonoma State and it was an excited game to watch two good teams battle it out."
Junior goalkeeper Natalie Dierickx (Kirkland, WA/Inglemoor) earned her third consecutive clean sheet making three saves to help keep Sonoma State (1-2-0) off the scoreboard.
The Vikings out-shot the Seawolves 25-13 and held a 10-3 advantage in shots on goal. SSU goalkeeper Morton made 9 saves.
The victory for the Vikings is the third by a 1-0 score during the early part of the season, defeating both MSU Denver and St. Edward's last weekend in Denver. The game-winner vs. MSU Denver was scored by White in the 87th minute and Eversaul scored the game-winner vs. SEU early in the 83rdminute.
WWU (3-0-0) returns to the road facing Cal State Los Angeles on Monday at 1 pm at University Stadium. The Vikings next home match will be Thursday, September 19 when WWU hosts Texas Woman's University at Harrington Stadium with kickoff at 7 pm. Tickets are available via advance purchase at WWUVikings.com/WS_Tickets and at the Harrington Field Box Office one hour prior to kickoff.
WWU returns to the road for a key West Region match-up against Cal State Los Angeles on Monday, with kickoff scheduled for 1 pm at University Stadium. The game will stream live and feature statistical updates with links available at WWUVikings.com/Live. The complete 2019 schedule and additional information on the Vikings can be viewed at WWUVikings.com/WSOC.
Western Washington 1, Sonoma State 0
Date: Sept. 12, 2019
Field: Harrington Field Site: Bellingham, WA
Goals by period 1 2 Tot
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Sonoma State........... 0 0 - 0
Western Washington..... 0 1 - 1
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 89:29 WWU Killman (Hielkema)
Shots: WWU 25, SSU 13
Shots on Goal: WWU 10, SSU 3
Saves: WWU 3 (Dierickx - 3), SSU 9 (Morton – 9)
Kits: WWU – Light Blue; SSU – Navy
Fans can follow WWU women's soccer online at WWUVikings.com/WSoc, and via social media on Twitter (@WWU_WSoccer), Instagram (@wwu_wsoccer) and Facebook (@WWUsoccerwomens). All home matches feature a live webcast, as well as most road matches, with links on how to follow the games available at WWUVikings.com/Live.
The Western Washington University women's soccer program has risen to the top of the Division II ranks, with a string of seven consecutive appearances in the NCAA Championships. WWU has advanced to the NCAA II Final Four in three of the last six seasons and played for the West Region championship in six of the last seven seasons. The Vikings won the NCAA Division II National Championship in 2016 with an undefeated 24-0-1 record, beating three-time defending national champion Grand Valley State 3-2 in the title game in Kansas City, Missouri. Including the national championship run, the Vikings put together a 39-game winning streak (4th-longest in NCAA II history) and a 40-game unbeaten streak. The program has claimed six of the last seven Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season titles, going 80-5-5 (.917) in league play during this stretch, and has won three of the last four GNAC Championships titles (2005, 2016, 2017). Head coach Travis Connell enters his 17th season leading the program in 2019, and has led the Vikings to nine trips to the NCAA Championships and 15 consecutive winning seasons.
