IRVINE, Calif.  – The Western Washington University men's soccer team recorded a pair of first-half goals and never looked back in a 3-1 non-conference victory over Concordia University Irvine Thursday night at Golden Eagles Field.

WWU registered its first victory of the young season to improve to 1-1-1 on the season, playing its first three matches on the road in California. The Vikings completes their season-opening road trip Saturday facing Point Loma in San Diego.

"Tonight was a great team win on the road for the Vikings. Everyone contributed, worked hard and pulled for each other," said WWU head coach Greg Brisbon. "Credit to CUI as they were a tough opponent and made it difficult on us. We are looking forward to a day of rest to prepare for another tough non-conference game at Point Loma on Saturday."

The Vikings got off to a quick start with the two first-half goals, with junior forward Andrew Rotter opening the scoring in the 9th minute and sophomore forward Albin Jonsson adding a second goal in the 30th minute. Both early strikes for the Vikings were set up by assists from senior midfielder Kyota Hiate.

The Vikings got off to a quick start taking a 1-0 lead in the 9th minute when Andrew Rotter found the back of the net at the 8:38 mark. Rotter took a beautifully-placed through ball from Hiate that found Rotter near the top of the 18-yard box, who then crossed the box with a left-footed shot into the lower right corner for his first goal of the young season.

WWU was relentless in its midfield attack setting up numerous first-half scoring opportunities, and cashed in with just over 15 minutes remaining in the half on a goal by Jonsson (29:24) to go up 2-0. Hiate was again the catalyst with a long through ball to Western's standout sophomore striker, who beat his defender one-on-one and slotted a left-footed shot across the box into the lower right corner for his second goal of the season (11th of career).

The Vikings went up 3-0 early in the second half when junior Lucas Hakamada connected on a strong right-footed shot from just outside of the 18-yard box, set up by a touch pass from Jonsson.

CUI countered with its first goal of the season under a minute after the Vikings played add-on with their third goal when Tyler Oakson connected on a long-distance shot that found the upper right corner of the goal.

While the final score line heavily favored the Vikings, official statistics showed Western narrowly out-shooting the Golden Eagles 18-17 and holding a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. WWU senior goalkeeper Brandon Locke captained the back line while making three saves and several outstanding individual efforts.

Western Washington 3, CUI 1
Date: September 7, 2023
Field: Golden Eagles Field   Site: Irvine, CA
Attendance: 105

Goals by period              1  2    Tot
-----------------------------------------
Western Washington.........  2  1  -  3
Concordia..................  0  1  -  1

SCORING SUMMARY:
1.       8:38     WWU      Rotter,A (Hiate)
2.      29:24     WWU      Jonsson (Hiate)
3.      48:25     WWU      Hakamada (Jonsson)
4.      49:02     CUI      Oakson (Morales)

Shots: WWU 18, CUI 17
Shots on Goal: WWU 6, CUI 4
Saves: WWU 3 (Locke - 3), CUI 3 (Flores – 2)
Corners: CUI 11, WWU 7
Fouls: WWU 8, CUI 5
Offsides: WWU 1, CUI 0
Kits: WWU (Navy), CUI (Gold)
Records: WWU (1-1-1), CUI (0-2-0)

WWU (1-1-1) remains in Southern California taking on Point Loma (1-2-0) on Saturday at 1 pm at PLNU Soccer Field. PLNU defeated Seattle Pacific 4-3 earlier Thursday in a back-and-forth game won in the 87th minute. The Vikings home opener is scheduled for September 14 hosting Colorado School of Mines at Harrington Field with a 7 pm kickoff under the lights. The complete 2023 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/23_MSOC.

The two programs met for just the second time in the all-time series with WWU now winning both contests. The Vikings defeated the Golden Eagles 2-0 at Harrington Field last September in Bellingham, receiving second-half goals from Albin Jonsson and Kyota Hiate.

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

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

The complete 2023 WWU Men's Soccer schedule can be viewed online at wwuvikings.com/23_MSOC and single-game tickets can also be purchased online via wwuvikings.com/Tickets. Current WWU students will gain free admission to all home regular-season athletic events for the 2023-24 school year.

The Western Washington University men's soccer program is led by head coach Greg Brisbon, who has spent over 20 seasons affiliated with WWU Soccer. The Vikings won the 2019 Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship, the third league trophy in program history, and advanced to the NCAA II Championships for the second time. The program is in its 4th season in 2023 and has recorded an overall record at or above the .500 mark in nine of the last 10 seasons, including a 12-4-3 record in 2022, 13-5-1 mark in 2019 and 11-6-1 in 2018. In 2016 the Vikings advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships for the first time in program history, using a late-season surge that saw the Vikings 5-0-1 over the last six matches to advance to the postseason. Overall the program has produced 63 GNAC Players of the Week selections, 30 First Team All-GNAC players and 4 GNAC Players of the Year since joining the conference in 2001. Off the field, WWU has built a strong academic reputation with 71 GNAC All-Academic selections over the last six years.