BURNABY, B.C. – Western Washington University senior forward Liv Larson had a goal and an assist to lead the No. 10 nationally-ranked Vikings to a decisive 3-0 victory over Simon Fraser University on Saturday at Terry Fox Field to open Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
The Vikings improved to 5-2-0 overall and are off to a 1-0-0 start in conference play. The Clan dropped to 0-4-2 overall and 0-2-0 in GNAC play. WWU has now won 17 consecutive contests vs. SFU and are undefeated at 19-0-2 vs. the Clan dating back to the 2008 season.
Larson (Arlington, WA) put the game away with her third goal of the season in the 76th minute, extending the Vikings lead to 2-0, and assisted on the final goal in the 88th minute by senior Emily Nelson (Puyallup, WA/Bellarmine Prep). Larson's goal, the 16th of her career, featured a quick finish from just inside the penalty area after a nice touch pass from senior forward Karli White (North Bend, WA/Mount Si/Seattle U.). Her assist on the final goal was the 23rd of her career, remaining 6th-most in program history.
White got the Vikings scoring started with a goal in the 15th minute, connecting on a left-footed shot that tucked in the far post after a threaded pass from junior midfielder Darby Doyle (Spokane, WA/Gonzaga Prep) with an additional assist from junior Grace Eversaul (Vancouer, WA/Skyview).
The Vikings dominated every facet of the game, out-shooting SFU 26-4 and held a decisive 13-3 advantage in shots on goal.
Junior goalkeeper Natalie Dierickx (Kirkland, WA/Inglemoor/Colorado State) recorded her fifth clean sheet of the season making three saves. All of the Vikings wins this season have come in shutout fashion, with the defense allowing only three goals in seven games.
The Vikings return to action next week with a pair of home GNAC matches at Harrington Field, hosting Central Washington on Thursday (7 pm) and Montana State Billings on Saturday (1 pm).
The Vikings (5-2-0, 1-0-0 GNAC) will play consecutive home games for the first time this season, hosting Central Washington (Thursday, 7 pm) and Montana State Billings (Saturday, 1 pm) at Harrington Field. Both matches will stream live at GNAC.tv with live stats also available. Tickets are available in advance at WWUVikings.com/WS_Tickets and beginning one hour prior to kickoff at the Harrington Field Box Office.
#10 Western Washington 3, Simon Fraser 0
Date: Sept. 28, 2019
Field: Terry Fox Field Site: Burnaby, BC
Attendance: 61
Goals by Period 1 2 Tot
-----------------------------------------
Western Washington.......... 1 2 - 3
Simon Fraser................ 0 0 - 0
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 14:04 WWU Eversaul (Doyle)
2. 75:23 WWU Larson (White)
3. 87:57 WWU Nelson (Larson)
Shots: WWU 26, SFU 4
Shots on Goal: WWU 13, SFU 3
Saves: WWU 3 (Dierickx – 3), SFU 10 (Anderson – 10)
Kits: WWU – Black; SFU – White
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.
