SEATTLE, Wash. – Senior forward Myka Carr scored a pair of goals over a two-minute span early in the second half to lift No. 1 seed Western Washington over No. 4 seed Western Oregon 3-1 Thursday in the semifinal round of the GNAC Women's Soccer Championships at Interbay Stadium.

 

The Vikings extended their unbeaten streak to 15 consecutive games (12-0-3) by improving to 13-2-5 overall on the season. The regular-season GNAC champions also remained unbeaten in conference semifinal contests at 12-0-0. In the 12th edition of the GNAC Championship, WWU has advanced to play in the title game in all 12 tournaments and will face No. 3 seed Simon Fraser Saturday at 1 pm aiming for its seventh postseason GNAC title. Saturday's final will be a rematch of last year's championship game with SFU defeating WWU 2-1 in Ellensburg.

 

"I have been really proud and impressed with how the group has grown over the past year and a half, and their understanding of important moments," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "It was seamless by our players. They recognized the situation, knew what they needed to do, and I was really proud of them and the way they executed."

 

WWU trailed 1-0 through the first 40 minutes of the contest before pulling even with less than five minutes remaining in the half. Carr then connected on goals in the 51st and 53rd minutes to send the Vikings to the victory.

 

"We are very fortunate, and we have a deep roster," said Connell. "As a coach you get to ride the hot player, and Myka was fantastic today. Emily and Myka had a good understanding of each other, and them being able to play together was really important for us today."

 

The Vikings held a 12-5 advantage in total shots and 6-2 in shots on goal. 

 

WWU controlled possession through the first portion of the game, but Western Oregon got on the board first with Ciara Garcia scoring in the 20th minute. Hadlie Bullock crossed a ball into the box where Garcia headed it over WWU goalkeeper Abigail Trengove from eight yards out for her team-leading fifth goal of the season.

 

With less than five minutes remaining in the half the Vikings found the equalizer when Olivia Connell got her foot on the ball in scrum inside the 6-yard box punching it across the line for her second goal of the season. The goal was set up off a corner from junior midfielder Morgan Manalili into the center of the box, with junior defender Kascia Muscutt keeping the ball alive to get the ball to Connell to earn the assist.

 

Carr, who had just two-career goals entering the night, made the most of her 41 minutes as a reserve. Her first finish came in the 51st minute, as a shot by WWU freshman Emily Holdridge that was blocked inside the box fell to her foot near the six-yard box. Carr calmly tucked away the go-ahead goal into the back of an open net.

 

The same combination of players linked up in the 53rd minute, when Holdridge lofted a soft pass over the back line and towards Carr in the middle of the box. With WOU goalkeeper Sophia Pierce charging off her line towards Carr, she turned and tucked a nifty, left-footed shot softly into the back of the net.

 

"The timing of the goals was really advantageous for us," Connell said. "Right before halftime makes it hard for the opposing team to concentrate, and then we came back out and got two goals immediately. The timing of the goals was critical to the game, and it looked dramatically different in the second half after those two goals."
 

 

The Vikings (13-2-5, 12-0-3 GNAC) advances to the GNAC Championships Final on Saturday with kickoff at 1 pm against No. 3 seed Simon Fraser. SFU defeated No. 2 seed and tournament host Seattle Pacific 2-0 in the second semifinal Thursday. WWU has now advanced to play in all 12 GNAC Championship games. More information and ticket information for the GNAC Championships are available online at GNACSports.com. The complete 2024 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/24_WSOC.

 

WWU improved to 5-0-0 in recent postseason games at Interbay Stadium in Seattle, going 2-0-0 to win the 2019 GNAC Championships, 2-0-0 at the NCAA Division II Championships Final Four in 2022 to win the program's second national championship and off to a 1-0-0 start this season at the GNAC Championships.

 

Western Washington 3, Western Oregon 1

GNAC Championships Semifinal

Date: November 14, 2024

Field: Interbay Stadium     Site: Seattle, WA

Attendance: 378

 

Goals by period                 1  2    Tot

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

Western Oregon................  1  0  -  1

Western Washington............  1  2  -  3

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      19:23      WOU       Garcia (Bullock, Foster)

2.      40:54      WWU       Connell (Muscutt)

3.      50:15      WWU       Carr (E. Holdridge)

4.      52:19      WWU       Carr (E. Holdridge)

 

Shots: WWU 12, WOU 5

Shots on Goal: WWU 6, WOU 2

Saves: WWU 1 (Trengove – 1), WOU 3 (Pierce – 3)

Corners: WWU 8, WOU 2

Fouls: WWU 11, WOU 5

Offsides: WWU 2, WOU 2

Kits: WWU (Light Blue), WOU (Black)

Updated Records: WWU (13-2-5), WOU (6-6-8)

 

The Vikings are making their 12th appearance in the GNAC Women's Soccer Championships, advancing to play in the four-team tournament every season the tournament has been in existence since it debuted in 2012. WWU has also won all 12 semifinal games to advance to the championship game each time and is six-time champions in the tournament (2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022). WWU heads into Saturday's 1 pm final with a 18-3-2 all-time record in the GNAC Championships.

 

 

The tournament will feature a live webcast on YouTube on GNAC.tv (search gnacsports on YouTube).

 

Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2024 season:

 

 

WWU clinched the season series over Western Oregon 2-0-1 with Thursday's 3-1 victory in the GNAC Championships semifinal round. The Vikings lead the all-time series over the Wolves 44-8-3 dating back to the first meeting in 1997. Over the last nine meetings, WWU is 5-2-2 vs. WOU. The Vikings improved to 4-0-0 all-time vs. the Wolves in the GNAC Championships, all semifinal victories..

 

Here is a look at the Vikings 2024 schedule and game-by-game results:

 

 

The Vikings extended their unbeaten streak to 15 consecutive games for the 7th-longest streak in program history. WWU had its eight-game winning streak snapped last Thursday with a 1-1 tie at Seattle Pacific. Here is a look at the longest winning and unbeaten streaks in program history:

 

 

Fans can follow WWU women's soccer online at WWUVikings.com/WSOC, and via social media on Twitter/X (@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, appearing in the NCAA Championships in 10 of the last 11 seasons and winning a pair of national championships in 2016 and 2022. WWU has advanced to the NCAA II Final Four in five of the last 10 seasons and played for the West Region championship in nine of the last 11 seasons (seven consecutive from 2015-22). The Vikings won the 2022 NCAA Division II National Championship 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 nine of the last 13 Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular-season titles (2024 Champions) and won five of the last eight GNAC Tournament titles (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2022). Head coach Travis Connell is in his 22nd season leading the program in 2024 (29th overall at WWU) and has led the Vikings to 12 trips to the NCAA Championships and 19 consecutive winning seasons.