ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Western Washington University women's soccer team scored a trio of goals for the third consecutive game, improving to 3-0-0 in GNAC play with a 3-0 road victory over Central Washington University Thursday at Tomlinson Stadium.

 

WWU's barrage of goals began in the 20th minute from junior forward Ellie Busik, and continued with a pair of goals in the first 10 minutes of the second half by freshman Morgan Manalili and senior Tera Ziemer. 

 

The Vikings improved to 4-1-2 overall with their eighth consecutive victory over CWU (22-game unbeaten streak) and have outscored opponents 9-2 in the three GNAC games to start the conference season. The Wildcats dropped to 1-5-1 overall and 0-3-0 in GNAC play. 

 

"Today we really executed out tactics and showed a lot of attention to detail on the offensive and defensive side of the field," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "That added up to a very quality road victory."

 

The Vikings got off to a quick start with a goal midway through the first half by junior forward Ellie Busik. The forward took a pass from Estera Levinte on the left side of the field, made a move into the box, and drove a shot from 15-yards out into the left corner of the net.

 

Holding a 1-0 halftime lead, the Vikings wasted little time adding an insurance goal scoring just 17 seconds into the second half. Ziemer took a strike from distance that was saved by the CWU goalkeeper, but Manalili pounced on the loose ball to score her third goal of the season tying freshman teammate Claire Potter for the team lead.

 

WWU put the game away in the 55th minute when Ziemer one-timed a pass from Potter slotting her show into the lower left corner for her first goal of the season.

 

The Vikings held a decisive 21-4 advantage in shots with an 11-2 edge in shots on goal.

 

Junior goalkeepers Claire Henninger (72 minutes, 2 saves) and Abigail Trengove (18 minutes) combined for the Vikings third shutout victory of the season.

 

WWU has scored at least three goals in three consecutive games for the first time since the 2019 national runner-up season when the Vikings scored 25 goals over a four-game stretch of shutouts.

 

The Vikings (4-1-2, 3-0-0 GNAC) remain on the road traveling to play at Northwest Nazarene (4-1-1, 2-0-0 GNAC) on Saturday in Nampa, Idaho. Links on how to follow both road games can be found by visiting wwuvikings.com/22_WSOC.

Western Washington 3, Central Washington 0

Date: September 24, 2022

Field: Tomlinson Stadium   Site: Ellensburg, WA

Attendance: 166

 

Goals by period              1  2    Tot

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

Western Washington.........  1  2  -  3

Central Washington.........  0  0  -  0

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      19:43     WWU     Busik (Levinte)

2.      45:43     WWU     Manalili (Ziemer)

3.      54:18     WWU     Ziemer (Potter)

 

Shots: WWU 21, CWU 4

Shots on Goal: WWU 11, CWU 2

Saves: WWU 2 (Henninger – 2, Trengove - 0), CWU 8 (Jaggard – 7, Patzer - 1)

Corners: WWU 3, CWU 0

Fouls: CWU 13, WWU 9

Offsides: WWU 4, CWU 2

Kits: WWU (Light Blue), CWU (White)

Records: WWU (4-1-2, 3-0-0), CWU (1-5-1, 0-3-0)

 

WWU improved to 48-10-8 all-time vs. Central Washington, extending its unbeaten streak vs. the Wildcats to 22 consecutive games (20-0-2). WWU has out-scored CWU 15-0 in the last three meetings dating back to the start of last season.

 

The Vikings (4-1-2, 3-0-0 GNAC) remain on the road traveling to play at Northwest Nazarene in Nampa on Saturday (4 pm MT). The game vs. the Nighthawks will feature a live webcast and statistical updates with direct links online via wwuvikings.com/22_WSOC.

 

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

 

 

Here is a look at the Vikings 2022 season schedule and results. WWU is 4-1-2 on the season and 3-0-0 in GNAC 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.

 

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 seven of the last nine Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season titles 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 126-17-11 (.854) record. WWU's 179 wins during the 2010s decade were the 6^th-most out of 1,043 NCAA women's soccer programs.