ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Western Washington University women's soccer team capped off their regular-season road-game schedule with a 4-0 defeat of rival Central Washington in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play Saturday afternoon at Tomlinson Stadium.
 
With the win WWU wrapped up an undefeated four-game road trip (3-0-1) to move to 8-3-4 overall and 6-1-3 in conference play. The Vikings extended their undefeated streak to six consecutive games going 5-0-1 during this stretch. Western remains in second place in the GNAC standings with 21 points.
 
The Vikings started their scoring barrage at the 15-minute mark on a set-piece goal just outside the 18-yard box. Freshman forward Emily Fojo made a great run across the middle on a through ball by Sophomore midfielder Morgan Manalili to draw the foul from the Wildcat's defense. Manalili drove the free-kick past the right of the goalkeeper to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead. The goal was Manalili's fourth of the season and third in the last three games.
 
Western played add on less than five minutes later when a corner kick taken by junior midfielder Gracen Crosby resulted in a Wildcat handball in the box. Crosby took the PK herself and buried it to the left of the goalkeeper to put the Viking up 2-0 in what would stand as the halftime score.
 
The second half saw more of the same offensive pressure from the Vikings. In the 71st minute Manalili stole a ball along the right sidelines, carrying it into the right edge of the box. Her cross found the waiting right foot of Minji Rauch who one-touched it into the right side of the net.
 
Sophomore forward Claire Potter wrapped up the scoring for the day as she put back a rebound off the post with one minute left in the game to give the Viks the decisive 4-0 victory.
 
"Today was a good bounce-back performance and victory to close out the road trip," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "We got contributions from a lot of players and I really liked the mentality they brought into this game. We'll now prepare for tough competition at home, playing in front of our great fans at Harrington Field."
 
WWU held a 14-7 advantage in shots and 12-3 in shots on goal over the Wildcats as Western's defense registered its GNAC-leading eighth shutout of the season. The Vikings extended their current unbeaten streak vs CWU to 25 consecutive games as they are now 22-0-3 against the Wildcats dating back to 2011.
 
Western's defense limited CWU to just three shots on goal, with senior goalkeeper Claire Henninger making three saves to log her sixth shutout of the season.
 
Central Washington's Danika Galbraith recorded eight saves in the match as the Wildcats dropped to 3-11-1 (2-7-1) on the season.
 

 

The Vikings (8-3-4, 6-1-3 GNAC) closed out the road portion of the 2023 regular season schedule and will enjoy a home-friendly schedule with the final four games at Harrington Field in Bellingham. The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC.

 

Western Washington 4, Central Washington 0

Date: October 21, 2023

Field: Tomlinson Stadium   Site: Ellensburg, WA

Attendance: 362

 

Goals by period                 1  2    Tot

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

Western Washington............  2  2  -  4

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

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      15:00     WWU     Manalili (Free Kick)

2.      19:21     WWU     Crosby (PK)

3.      70:27     WWU     Rauch (Manalili)

4.      89:00     WWU     Potter

 

Shots: WWU 14, CWU 7

Shots on Goal: WWU 12, CWU 3

Saves: WWU 3 (Henninger – 3), CWU 8 (Galbraith - 8)

Corners: WWU 9, CWU 3

Fouls: WWU 13, CWU 10

Offsides: WWU 2, CWU 2

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

Records: WWU (8-3-4, 6-1-3), CWU (3-11-1, 2-7-1)

 

WWU swept the season series vs. CWU also winning 1-0 at home on October 5 at Harrington Field. Western now leads the all-time series 50-10-9 dating back to the first meeting in 1987. The Vikings extended its unbeaten streak vs. the Wildcats to 25 straight going 22-0-3 dating back to the 2011 season. Western is now 22-5-5 all-time in games played in Ellensburg.

 

Here is a look at the updated GNAC standings to start off the fifth week of conference play:

 

 

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

 

 

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

 

 

The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC. Single-game tickets for the 2023 season are currently on sale via wwuvikings.com/Tickets. New for the 2023-24 season is FREE tickets for current WWU students to all regular-season home sporting events.

 

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 10 consecutive appearances in the NCAA Championships and a pair of national championships in 2016 and 2022. WWU has advanced to the NCAA II Final Four in five of the last nine seasons and played for the West Region championship in nine of the last 10 seasons (seven consecutive). The Vikings won the 2022 title with a 2-1 win over No. 1 nationally-ranked West Chester, 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. The program has claimed eight of the last 10 Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season titles (2022 Champions) and won five of the last seven GNAC Tournament titles (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022). Head coach Travis Connell is in his 21st season leading the program in 2023 (28th overall at WWU) and has led the Vikings to 12 trips to the NCAA Championships (10 straight) and 19 consecutive winning seasons. Over the last nine seasons (since 2015), the Vikings have combined for a 150-21-17 record (.845 winning pct.).