BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University women's soccer team battled rival Seattle Pacific University to a 1-1 draw Saturday evening in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play at Interbay Stadium.

 

WWU completed a busy stretch of four games in 10 days with a 1-1-2 record to move to 3-2-2 overall and 1-0-1 in GNAC play. SPU had its record move to 4-2-1 overall and 1-0-1 in conference play.

 

"This was another entertaining game at Interbay between the Vikings and Falcons," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "Both teams played hard, and it was a playoff-type game. This helped us get better. We are starting to put things together on offense creating more and more chances. We are excited for our next two games on the road with another opportunity to continue to get better."

 

Returning to Interbay for the first time since claiming the 2022 NCAA Division II National Championship last December, the Vikings got a late equalizer from sophomore Morgan Manalili in the 83rd minute to tie things up.

 

SPU went up 1-0 less than five minutes into the second half when Jacqueline Blakeley found the back of the net in the 50th minute. Sophie Beadle dispossessed a Viking defender deep in their half of the field and found Blakeley with a cross, finishing from eight yards out into the lower right corner.

 

Western leveled the score at the at the 82:16 mark with Manalili's first goal of the season. Senior midfielder Payton Neal chipped the ball over the top of the Falcon defense to Manalili, who finished inside the left post from just outside the box.

 

The Vikings found a little more Interbay magic with less than a minute remaining in the contest as the Falcons drew a penalty at the 89:08 mark. With WWU senior goalkeeper Claire Henninger ready to defend the goal, Marissa Bankey PK had her shot skim the outside of the right post with Henninger guessing correctly to defend that quadrant to keep the game tied 1-1.

 

SPU held a slim 18-15 edge in shots and even closer advantage in shots on goal, 7-6.

 

Henninger made a career-high six saves between the posts to keep the Vikings in the match. 
 

 

The Vikings (3-2-2) continue the early-season GNAC schedule next week with a pair of road matches, traveling to play at Saint Martin's in Lacey on Thursday (3 pm) and Western Oregon in Monmouth on Saturday (2 pm). The Vikings next home game is scheduled for Thursday, October 5 hosting Central Washington University with a 4 pm kickoff at Harrington Field. The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_WSOC.

 

Western Washington 1, Seattle Pacific 1

Date: September 23, 2023

Field: Interbay Stadium   Site: Seattle, WA

Attendance: 286

 

Goals by period                 1  2    Tot

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

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

Seattle Pacific...............  0  1  -  1

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      49:30     SPU     Blakeley (Beadle)

2.      82:16     WWU     Manalili (Neal)

 

Shots: SPU 18, WWU 15

Shots on Goal: SPU 7, WWU 6

Saves: WWU 6 (Henninger – 6), SPU 5 (Cullen – 5)

Corners: SPU 6, WWU 3

Fouls: WWU 12, SPU 9

Offsides: WWU 2, SPU 1

Kits: WWU (Black), SPU (White)

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

 

Saturday's tie moved the all-time series to 23-23-8 with WWU holding a 19-5-5 record in the last 29 meetings dating back to October 2013. The Vikings had a 21-game unbeaten streak vs. the Falcons from 2013-21. Western is 11-4-4 in its last 19 games at Interbay Stadium, with an 8-4-4 record vs. the Falcons during this stretch dating back to 2008. The Vikings captured the 2022 NCAA Division II National Championship with a 2-1 victory over West Chester at Interbay Stadium.

 

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

 

 

Here is a look at the updated GNAC standings through the first week of conference play:

 

 

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.

 

WWU will celebrate its 2022 national championship prior to the October 7 game vs. Northwest Nazarene. A championship banner will be unveiled at Harrington Field to show both the 2016 and 2022 national titles and the first 350 fans will receive a special national championship crest sticker.

 

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 145-20-15 record (.847 winning pct.).