ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The No. 2 seed Western Washington University women's soccer team were on the short end of a tightly-contested GNAC Championships final Saturday at Tomlinson Stadium, falling to No. 4 Simon Fraser University 2-1.

 

WWU reached the GNAC Championships Final for the 11th consecutive season, but an 81st-minute goal by SFU proved to be the game-winner as the Vikings were unable to win their seventh GNAC postseason title. Western (12-5-4) will now wait for Selection Monday to see if it will 

 

Much like their semifinal victory over No. 1 Seattle Pacific, the Red Leafs struck immediately out of the gates to take a 1-0 lead. Sarah Caravatta made a streaking run on a counterattack and unleashed a shot on goal that was kick-saved by WWU goalkeeper Claire Henninger. All-GNAC forward Isabella Muzzolini collected the rebound and snuck the ball past Henninger for the second-minute goal. 

 

After pressing for the equalizer close to half, the Vikings leveled the game 1-1 in the 58th minute on a goal by junior forward Myka Carr. Junior midfielder Gracen Crosby tracked a ball down near midfield and found senior midfielder Payton Neal in space 30 yards our. Playing in her 90th career match, Neal dropped a pass over the SFU back line where Carr finished with her left foot from 16 yards out into the left side of the goal.

 

SFU put the game-winner into the back of the net in the 81st minute on a goal by Raegan MacKenzie. Kaiden Sherwood set a cross into the box that MacKenzie as able to corral and get off a shot from close quarter, which was saved by Henninger. The rebound inside the six-yard box trickled over the line for the late goal.

 

WWU held a decisive 10-3 advantage in corner kicks, but were unable to convert on any of its set pieces. The Vikings also out-shot SFU 10-8, but the Red Leafs had a 7-6 advantage in shots on target. Henninger made five saves for the Vikings.

 

"I thought we played well for a majority of the game and created good chances," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "These playoff games feature big moments and Simon Fraser won that battle today. Inside the penalty boxes on both ends they executed more times than we did. I want to thank all of my seniors…while they may not have finished their GNAC Championships career how they wanted to, they have been a phenomenal group and certainly left their mark in program history."

 

SFU improved to 8-5-5 on the season and will receive the GNAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships.

 

"I want to thank Central Washington and the GNAC for hosting a great championship," added Connell. "SFU got a well-deserved victory. They played two great games at this tournament, got the tactics right and were motivated."
 

 

The Vikings (12-5-4) will now wait for Monday's NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championships Selection Show that is set to air on NCAA.com at 3:30 pm PT/6:30 pm ET. Six teams from the West Region will advance to play in the NCAA postseason, with two three-team host sites. WWU entered the GNAC Championships ranked No. 4 in the West Region. WWU has a current streak of 10 consecutive trips to the West Regional championships, a string that dates back to the 2012 season.

 

Simon Fraser 2, Western Washington 1

GNAC Championships Final

Date: November 11, 2023

Field: Tomlinson Stadium   Site: Ellensburg, WA

Attendance: 212

 

Goals by period                 1  2    Tot

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

Simon Fraser..................  1  1  -  2

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

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.       1:25     SFU     Muzzolini (Caravatta)

2.      57:17     WWU     Carr (Neal)

3.      80:45     SFU     MacKenzie (Sherwood)

 

Shots: WWU 10, SFU 8

Shots on Goal: SFU 7, WWU 4

Saves: WWU 5 (Henninger – 5), SFU 5 (Loewen – 5)

Corners: WWU 10, SFU 3

Fouls: SFU 12, WWU 10

Offsides: WWU 4, SFU 1

Kits: WWU (Navy), SFU (Red)

Records: WWU (12-5-4), SFU (8-5-5)

 

WWU fell short of winning its seventh GNAC Tournament title with Saturday's 2-1 loss to Simon Fraser. The Vikings advanced to Saturday's final with a 2-1 win over Western Oregon to improve to 11-0-0 all-time in the GNAC Championships semifinal games. Western has now played in the championship game in every year the tournament has been in existence since beginning in 2012. The Vikings won postseason GNAC titles in 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2022 and are now 17-3-2 all-time in the GNAC postseason. 

 

 

WWU had its 25-match winning streak and 29-game unbeaten streak snapped in Saturday's 2-1 loss in the GNAC Championships final…the Vikings lead the all-time series 37-18-3 and are 3-1 vs. the Red Leafs in GNA Championships 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:

 

 

Seniors Katie Watt and Payton Neal have both climbed the program all-time list for career games played, with both players beginning their careers during the 2019 national runner-up season. Watt has now appeared in 91 career games to rank tied for 5th in program history, and is the only player to start in a pair of national championship games. Neal is right behind Watt with 90 career caps to rank tied for 9th in WWU history. Here is a look at the WWU all-time top-10 for career games played:

 

 

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 12 Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season titles (2022 Champions) and won five of the last eight 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.