BELLINGHAM, Wash. – There's no place like home for the Western Washington University women's soccer team.

 

The Vikings continued their late-season surge extending the unbeaten streak to seven consecutive games (6-0-1) with a 1-0 victory over Western Oregon University Thursday evening under the lights at Harrington Field.

 

WWU got scored the game-winning goal early in the 28th minute when sophomore midfielder Morgan Manalili recorded her team-leading fifth goal of the season (fourth in last 4 G).

 

The eventual game-winner was set up by a intercepted pass Manalili, who got off a quick touch to junior forward Sophie Bearden Croft, who returned a pass to find Manalili streaking near the top of the 18-yard box who finished with a right-footed blast into the right corner.

 

The Viking would hold on for the shutout victory with several key defensive stands and five saves from senior goalkeeper Claire Henninger. WWU leads the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with nine shutouts and a 0.69 goals against average. 

 

With the victory, WWU improved to 9-3-4 overall with an undefeated 5-0-1 mark at Harrington Field. The Vikings are also now 6-0-0 when leading at the half and 8-0-0 when scoring first. With the win and a Seattle Pacific scoreless tie vs. Central Washington, the Vikings are within one game of the GNAC lead with 24 points at 7-1-3 in league play.

 

"We have to give credit to Western Oregon for never giving up…they stretched us to the limit tonight," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "We bent, but did not break. I am really proud of our mentality again tonight."

 

Western Oregon (7-4-4, 4-4-3 GNAC) held a 13-9 advantage in total shots and 5-2 lead in shots on goal. 

 

The Vikings (9-3-4, 7-1-3 GNAC) hosts Saint Martin's University on Saturday in GNAC play with kickoff scheduled for 1 pm at Harrington Field. WWU has three remaining regular-season games on the 2023 schedule, with all home games in Bellingham. The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC.

 

Western Washington 1, Western Oregon 0

Date: October 26, 2023

Field: Harrington Field   Site: Bellingham, WA

Attendance: 189

 

Goals by period                 1  2    Tot

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

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

Western Washington............  1  0  -  1

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      27:07     WWU     Manalili (Bearden Croft)

 

Shots: WOU 13, WWU 9

Shots on Goal: WOU 5, WWU 2

Saves: WWU 5 (Henninger – 5), WOU 1 (Walton - 1)

Corners: WWU 4, WOU 1

Fouls: WWU 15, WOU 9

Offsides: WWU 1, WOU 1

Kits: WWU (Black), WOU (White)

Records: WWU (9-3-4, 7-1-3), WOU (7-4-4, 4-4-3)

 

WWU avenged its 1-0 road loss to Western Oregon on September 30 with Thursday's 1-0 home victory. The Vikings improved to 41-8-2 all-time vs. the Wolves with a 22-2-0 mark in home games in the series. 

 

Here is a look at the updated GNAC standings through conference play on Thursday:

 

 

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 151-21-17 record (.844 winning pct.).