BELLINGHAM, Wash. – It's never over until it is over at Harrington Field.
For the third time in the last two seasons, the Vikings scored an equalizing goal in the final moments of a game, this time when senior defender Camron Miller headed home the tying goal with 67-seconds remaining in regulation in what ended up as a 1-1 tie vs. Seattle Pacific on Saturday.
WWU trailed 1-0 early in the contest when SPU scored at the six-minute mark. Alex Mejia delivered a cross into the box where Travis Swallow one-timed it into the back of the net with his left foot from 10-yards out to give the Falcons the early lead.
SPU looked to end its season with a road win against the Vikings, but Miller's header with 1:07 remaining on the clock forced overtime. The game-tying goal was set up by a long cross from junior midfielder Gus Diehl from 40-yards out, which found Miller streaking through the box where he headed it home just inside the right post.
Both teams were held scoreless in the 20 minutes of overtime. WWU finished the abbreviated spring season 3-1-1, while SPU was 3-2-1. The Vikings went 1-0-1 vs. the Falcons and recorded a pair of wins over Saint Martin's.
Senior forward Georg Cholewa played his final match as a Viking, with the remaining seniors on the roster scheduled to come back in the fall for their extra year of eligibility. Cholewa, a native of Leipzig, Germany, had three shots on goal in the game, and had a chance for the game winner when his free kick from just outside the box in the 107th minute was saved by SPU goalkeeper Lars Helleren.
The Vikings held a 17-12 advantage in shots, including an 11-6 edge in the second half, and were on target with nine shots (SPU had 5 shots on goal).
WWU junior goalkeeper Patrick Restum played all 110 minutes, making four saves.
WWU is 6-1-3 over the last 10 meetings against the Falcons dating back to the start of the 2016 season. Saturday's tie snapped a four-game winning streak for the Vikings against SPU, marking the longest winning streak over the Falcons in program history. SPU leads the all-time series 37-13-9 according to WWU records.
The Vikings (3-1-1) have completed the 2021 spring season and are set to open the official 2021 campaign with a two-game Northern California road trip to face West Region rivals Chico State (9/2) and Sonoma State (9/4).
Western Washington 1, Seattle Pacific 1 (2 OT)
Date: May 15, 2021
Field: Harrington Field Site: Bellingham, WA
Weather: Sunny, mid 60s, Perfect Spring Day for Soccer
Goals by period 1 2 OT Tot
-----------------------------------------
Seattle Pacific.......... 1 0 0 - 1
Western Washington....... 0 1 0 - 1
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 6:00 SPU Swallow (Mejia)
2. 88:53 WWU Miller (Diehl)
Shots: WWU 17, SPU 12
Shots on Goal: WWU 9, SPU 5
Saves: WWU 4 (Restum - 4), SPU 8 (Helleren – 8, Samson - 0)
Corners: SPU 7, WWU 4
Fouls: SPU 21, WWU 17
Offsides: SPU 3, WWU 1
The Vikings concluded the 2021 spring schedule playing five matches, going 3-2 in an abbreviated season that ran from late March to mid-May.
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Date
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Opponent
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Location
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Result
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March 27 (Sat)
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Puget Sound
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Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
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L, 1-0
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April 14 (Wed)
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Saint Martin's
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Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
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W, 1-0 (OT)
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May 1 (Sat)
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at Saint Martin's
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Lacey, WA (SMU Soccer Field)
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W, 2-1
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May 8 (Sat)
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at Seattle Pacific
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Seattle, WA (Interbay Stadium)
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W, 2-1
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May 15 (Sat)
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Seattle Pacific
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Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
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T, 1-1 (2 OT)
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