BELLINGHAM, Wash. – With the regular season winding down, the Western Washington University women's soccer is heating up.

 

The Vikings carry a four-game winning streak into road games this week at Northwest Nazarene (Thursday) and Central Washington (Saturday) in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play. 

 

WWU is 7-3-3 overall and is in second place in the GNAC with a 5-1-2 record (17 points) with just six contests remaining in the regular season. After completing its current four-game road trip (2-0 record so far), the Vikings close out the regular season with four consecutive home games at Harrington Field.

 

The Vikings current winning streak started with home victories against CWU (1-0) and Northwest Nazarene (2-1) and continued last week with road wins at Montana State Billings (3-1) and Simon Fraser (2-1). Over the last nine games Western has gone 5-1-3.

 

The current road trip concludes a grueling stretch of playing four games in three different states (Montana, Idaho, Washington) and one province (British Columbia).

 

Trailing conference leader Seattle Pacific by one game in the standings, WWU is looking to secure one of the four spots in the GNAC Championships that will be played November 9-11 in Ellensburg.

 

The Vikings continue to be led by a strong defensive performance ranking fourth in the conference with an 0.85 goals against average and tied for the GNAC lead with six shutouts. Over the last nine games (5-1-3 record), Western has allowed five goals while out-scoring multiple goals in each of the last three games.

 

The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC with direct links on how to follow the team on the road and how to purchase tickets online.

 

 

The Vikings (7-3-3, 5-1-2 GNAC) complete a four-game road trip traveling to play at Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, Idaho on Thursday (7 pm MT/6 pm PT) and Central Washington in Ellensburg on Saturday (12 pm). With six regular-season matches remaining on the schedule, Western completes the road portion of the schedule this week and completes the slate with four consecutive home games at Harrington Field. The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC.

 

WWU has only one defeat over its last nine games going 5-1-3 during this stretch dating back to September 18. The Vikings carry a season-high four-game winning streak into this week's road schedule at NNU and CWU. The Vikings are in second place in the GNAC standings with a 5-1-2 record (17 points).

 

Sophomore midfielder Morgan Manalili was selected as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week for games played October 9-15. Manalili recorded a five-point week while leading the Vikings to a pair of conference road victories extending the team's winning streak to four consecutive games. The sophomore was credited with an assist on the Vikings first goal in a 3-1 win at Montana State Billings on Thursday and recorded her first career brace to account for both goals in the 2-1 win on Saturday at Simon Fraser. In 14 games this season, Manalili is the team leader with eight points, scoring three goals and tallying two assists. In 38 career games over two seasons, the 2022 GNAC Freshman of the Year has notched 13 goals and seven assists for 33 points.

 

The Vikings complete a four-game road trip this week, putting a close to the regular-season road-game schedule. Current road trip will feature games in three different states (Montana, Idaho, Washington) and one province (British Columbia). Following the road trip, the Vikings will settle into Harrington Field to play the final four games of the regular season in Bellingham, concluding with Senior Day against Montana State Billings on Saturday, November 4.

 

WWU has six regular season games remaining on the schedule, all in GNAC play. The top four teams in the conference standings at the end of the regular season will qualify for the GNAC Championships held November 9-11 in Ellensburg, Washington. The Vikings are the defending conference tournament champions.

 

Here is a look at the series history between the Vikings and this week's opponents:

 

• Northwest Nazarene: Vikings close out season series vs. NNU with Thursday night match in Nampa…WWU won 2-1 on October 7 in Bellingham on an own goal with 24 seconds remaining…Vikings are 41-2-2 all-time vs. the Nighthawks with a five-game unbeaten streak (4-0-1)…defeated NNU 1-0 in last trip to Nampa in the GNAC Championships Final.
• Central Washington: Vikings and Wildcats meet for the second time this season, with WWU winning 1-0 on October 5 at Harrington Field…Western leads the all-time series 49-10-9 dating back to first meeting in 1987…current 24-game unbeaten streak vs. CWU going 21-0-3 dating back to the 2011 season…Vikings are 21-5-5 all-time in games played in Ellensburg.

 

Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2023 season:

 

 

News and notes on the 2023 WWU Women's Soccer team:

 

• The Record – 7-3-3 overall record with three of 13 matches vs. top-25 teams.
• GNAC Table – 2nd GNAC standings with 17 points (5-1-2).
• Home Cooking – Undefeated in five home games (4-0-1) at Harrington Field…3-3-2 on the road.
• Spreading the Wealth – Viking goals this season have come from seven different players – Mie Cairns (3), Morgan Manalili (3), Sophie Bearden Croft (2), Payton Neal, Gracen Crosby, Minji Rauch and Jayden Nguyen…also two own goals.
• Full Time Asia – Sophomore defender Asia Hardin has played 1155 out of a possible 1170 minutes this season (12 games of FT action)…appeared in 37 career games (out of 38 possible), playing the full 90 in 36 of 37 games.
• Tie Games – Have recorded three draws this season, tied for 6th-most in a single season in program history.
• National Champions – 2016 and 2022 NCAA II National Champions and national runner-up in 2019.
• GNAC Title – Won 9th GNAC regular-season title in 2022, which includes eight in last 10 seasons…also won sixth GNAC Tournament title.
• Leading Goal Scorer – Sophomore Morgan Manalili led the Vikings with 10 goals and 25 total points last season while being selected as the GNAC Freshman of the Year and All-American…has three goals this season to tie for the team lead.
• Cairns Trio of Goals – Freshman Mie Cairns is tied for the team lead with three goals, including her first career brace accounting for two of the three goals in 3-1 win at MSUB.
• Estera Suffers Injury – Senior Estera Levinte has tallied 48 career points, with 15 goals and 18 assists (tie for 24th in WWU history)…ranks tied for 12th in WWU history with 18 assists…senior suffered early-season knee injury and is out for an undetermined amount of time.
• Henninger's Clean Sheets – Senior goalkeeper Claire Henninger recorded 11 shutouts last season to rank 5th in NCAA Division II…entered WWU single-season record books tying for 4th-most shutouts…16 career shutouts to rank 10th in program history.
• Harrington Success – Owns all-time 83-5-6 all-time playing at the on-campus facility that debuted in 2014 (.915).
• Always Dancing – Advanced to each of the last 10 NCAA Division II Championships and played in seven consecutive West Regional title matches (9 in last 10 seasons)…all-time record of 44-11-3 in the postseason (GNAC + NCAA).
• Roster Breakdown – The 2023 roster features 28 players, with 19 from Washington, six from Oregon, two from California and one from Arizona…eligibility wise, the roster has five freshmen, eight sophomores, seven juniors and eight seniors.
• The Gaffer – Travis Connell is in his 21st season leading the WWU Women's program (28th at WWU)…owns an all-time 306-83-40 (.760) as the Western women's head coach…owns 427 career wins including time with WWU men's soccer…selected as 2022 GNAC Coach of the Year (his 7th award).

 

In addition to winning the national title in 2016 and 2022, the Vikings have played in seven consecutive West Regional Championship matches and nine of the last 10. WWU has won the West Regional title five times (2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2022).

 

Here is a look at the updated GNAC standings heading into the fifth week of conference play:

 

 

Since Harrington Field debuted on the south edge of the WWU campus in 2014, the Vikings are 83-5-6 (.915) playing in front of the home crowd (4-0-1 in 2023, 9-1-1 in 2022). The Vikings are 13-2-0 at Harrington Field in postseason play, hosting NCAA games in 2014 (0-1-0), 2015 (3-0-0), 2016 (1-0-0), 2017 (1-0-0), 2019 (2-0-0), 2021 (1-0-0) and 2022 (3-0-0), and GNAC Championships games in 2016 (1-0-0) and 2021 (1-1-0). Including the men's program, WWU Soccer has a combined record of 128-27-18 (.792) at Harrington Field.

 

The complete 2023 WWU Women's Soccer schedule can be viewed online at wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC and single-game tickets can also be purchased online via wwuvikings.com/Tickets. New for the 2023-24 season for all intercollegiate sports will be FREE STUDENT TICKETS at all regular-season home events!

 

Here is a look at the Vikings 2023 schedule and results:

 

 

The Vikings have made 10 consecutive trips to the NCAA Division II Championships and 12 overall appearances in the NCAA postseason in program history. WWU is the two-time NCAA II National Champion, winning titles in 2016 and 2022, while also playing in the national championship game in 2019. Western is 5-0 all-time in national quarterfinal games and 3-2 in national semifinal contests. The program owns an all-time 28-9-1 record in NCAA Championships play, winning at least one game in 10 of 12 trips to the NCAA postseason. WWU was crowned national champion in 2016 with a 24-0-1 record, capped by a 3-2 victory over Grand Valley State in Kansas City, Missouri, and earned a second star with a 2-1 win over West Chester to cap the 2022 season in Seattle.

 

Advanced to play in its fifth NCAA Division II Championships Final Four in 2022 with all coming in the last nine seasons (since 2013). WWU appeared in the national semifinal round in 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2022 (no championships in 2020). Additionally, the Vikings have played in the West Regional championship game in seven consecutive seasons and nine of the last 10 seasons. Here is a look at the most appearances in the NCAA D2 Final Four since the Vikings made their first appearance in 2013, with WWU trailing only Grand Valley State:

 

• Grand Valley State - 7
• Western Washington - 5
• Columbus State - 3
• Bridgeport & Saint Rose - 2

 

WWU has won 128 of its last 162 games dating back to the start of the 2016 national championship season, going 128-19-15 (.836) during this stretch. The program has won eight of the last 10 GNAC regular-season titles (last in 2022), five of the last seven GNAC Tournaments (last in 2022) and advanced to the NCAA Championships in each of the last 10 seasons. During the 10-year stretch of consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, WWU has reached the West Regional Championship match nine times and advanced to the NCAA II national semifinals five times (2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2022). Western has a current streak of 19 consecutive winning seasons for one of the top-10 longest active streaks in NCAA II.

 

WWU head coach Travis Connell recorded his milestone 300th victory while leading the women's program with the 2-0 season-opening victory over Biola, a span that includes 21 seasons. Connell has combined to go 306-83-40 since taking over the program in 2003, and also has another 125 wins for 431 total WWU head coaching wins including his time spent as the head men's soccer coach at Western.

 

Travis Connell is in his 21st season leading the women's program as head coach and 28th overall as a coach at WWU. Owns a 306-83-40 (.760) record leading the women's program to rank as the 7th-winningest active coach amongst NCAA Division II head coaches. Overall, he is 10th among all-time winningest NCAA Division II coaches, with a minimum of 10 years as a head coach at a DII school. Connell recorded his 300th win leading the women's program on August 31, 2023 in a 2-0 victory over Biola, and including 125 wins as the head coach of the men's soccer program at WWU, Connell has amassed 431 career NCAA head coaching victories. He is assisted by former Viking standout goalkeeper Jamie Arthurs, Johann Lahud-Zahner and Alex McBeath.

 

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).