BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The No. 5 nationally-ranked Western Washington University women's soccer team wrapped up the 2022 regular season with a 3-0 victory over Saint Martin's University on Senior Day at Harrington Field to capture the program's ninth Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season title.

 

The Vikings improved to 12-2-4 overall and finished the grueling 14-game GNAC schedule at 11-1-2 to earn 35 points, five ahead of second-place Northwest Nazarene. WWU will be the No. 1 seed in the four-team GNAC Championships that opens Thursday (Nov. 3) in Nampa, Idaho. This marks the Vikings ninth GNAC regular-season title and eight in the last 10 seasons.

 

"Our seniors mean so much to our team and the soccer program. Everyone worked hard today to make this game mean something special for them," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "Winning a championship at home on Senior Day is fantastic. Our student-athletes work so hard and sacrifice other things in their lives for the chance to accomplish something memorable together as a group. Today they did that."

 

WWU received goals from freshman Morgan Manalili (tied for team lead with 6 goals) and senior Dayana Diaz (3rd goal) in the victory, along with an own goal by Saint Martin's (5-10-2, 3-9-2).

 

The Vikings held a 20-6 advantage in shots over the Saints, with a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. Junior goalkeeper Claire Henninger made four saves in net to record her seventh shutout of the season.

 

Prior to the game WWU held a special Senior Day celebration, honoring the Vikings seven senior players:

 

• Zola Carbone (Bellingham, WA)
• Dayana Diaz (Granite Falls, WA)
• Caylie Etherington (Oak Harbor, WA)
• Allison Lepp (Minot, ND)
• Karina Provo (Federal Way, WA)
• Gracie Sturdevant (Kirkland, WA)
• Tera Ziemer (Santa Rosa, CA)

WWU (12-2-4, 11-1-2 GNAC) heads into the postseason as the No. 1 seed in the GNAC Championships, facing No. 4 seed Simon Fraser in the first semifinal game on Thursday, November 3 at 4 pm MT/3 pm PT at the NNU Soccer Field in Nampa, Idaho. No. 2 Northwest Nazarene (tournament host) and No. 3 Seattle Pacific will match-up in the evening semifinal with kickoff at 7 pm MT/6 pm PT. All GNAC Championship games will stream live on YouTube via GNAC.tv and tickets are available at GNACTickets.com.

 

The Vikings clinched their ninth regular-season title, adding to conference regular-season championships in 2008, 2012-16 and 2018-19. WWU has finished first or second in the final GNAC table in each of the last 10 seasons dating back to 2012.

 

#5 Western Washington 3, Saint Martin's 0

Date: October 29, 2022

Field: Harrington Field   Site: Bellingham, WA

Attendance: 321           Weather: 50's, Mild and Calm

 

Goals by period              1  2    Tot

-----------------------------------------

Western Oregon.............  0  0  -  0

#5 Western Washington......  1  2  -  3

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      11:29     WWU     Manalili (Muscutt)

2.      62:38     WWU     Own Goal by SMU

3.      70:45     WWU     Diaz (Levinte)

 

Shots: WWU 20, SMU 6

Shots on Goal: WWU 6, SMU 4

Saves: WWU 4 (Henninger – 4), SMU 4 (Campigotto – 4)

Corners: WWU 4, SMU 2

Fouls: WWU 13, SMU 10

Offsides: WWU 9, SMJU 0

Kits: WWU (Light Blue), SMU (Red)

Records: WWU (12-2-4, 11-1-2), SMU (5-10-2, 3-9-2)

 

Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2022 season:

 

 

Here is a look at the updated records of the eight GNAC programs play on Thursday. WWU holds a two-point lead in the standings heading into the final day of conference play on Saturday. WWU, NNU and Seattle Pacific have all secured a spot in the four-team GNAC Championships that will be held November 3-5 in Nampa, Idaho:

 

 

The Vikings have officially punched their ticket to the postseason for the four-team GNAC Championships that will be held November 3-5 in Nampa, Idaho. WWU has now qualified for each of the 10 GNAC Championships and is a five-time winner of the event with tournament titles in in 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019. Western has advanced to the title game every season of the GNAC Championships and is 14-2-2 all-time in the GNAC postseason. The Vikings are the No. 1 seed for the four-team tournament and will face No. 4 seed Simon Fraser in the 4 pm MT/3 pm PT semifinal on Thursday (Nov. 3) at NNU Soccer Field.

Here is a look at the Vikings 2022 season schedule and results. WWU finished the regular season with a 12-2-4 record and claimed the regular-season GNAC title going 11-1-2 in conference play:

 

 

There are likely to be a lot of tie games this season with new NCAA soccer rules for 2022 which eliminates overtime during the regular season. Any match that is tied at the 90-minute mark will now end that way, which means no overtime or golden goal scenarios. In the postseason, there will be overtime but no more golden goal; teams will play two full 10-minute extra periods regardless of any goals and if it is still tied, the advancing team will be decided on penalty kicks. Just for kicks, the WWU single-season record for ties is five set in 1981, and most recently four in 2009, 2010 and 2014 (WWU has four this season).

 

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). 

 

The Western Washington University women's soccer program has risen to the top of the Division II ranks, with a string of nine consecutive appearances in the NCAA Championships. WWU has advanced to the NCAA II Final Four in four of the last eight seasons and played for the West Region championship in eight of the last nine seasons (six consecutive). The Vikings played for the 2019 national title and 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 eight of the last 10 Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season titles (2022 Champions) and won four of the last five GNAC Tournament titles (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019). Head coach Travis Connell is in his 20th season leading the program in 2022 (27th overall at WWU) and has led the Vikings to 11 trips to the NCAA Championships (9 straight) and 28 consecutive winning seasons. He picked up his 400th career victory October 16, 2021 vs. Simon Fraser. WWU finished the 2019 season with a 23-3-0 record, winning the West Regional title and played in the national championship game falling 1-0 to Grand Valley State. Over the last eight seasons (since 2015), the Vikings have combined for a 135-18-13 (.852) record. WWU's 179 wins during the 2010s decade were the 6^th-most out of 1,043 NCAA women's soccer programs.