POMONA, Calif. – The Western Washington University women's soccer team had its postseason run come to an end with a 1-0 loss to top-seeded Cal Poly Pomona Saturday afternoon in the second round of the NCAA Division II Championships at Kellogg Stadium.

 

The No. 5 seed Vikings conceded an early second-half goal on Cal Poly Pomona's home field to give the No. 1 seed and No. 4 nationally-ranked Broncos the shutout victory to advance to the West Regional final vs. No. 2 Point Loma. 

 

WWU ends its 2024 season with a 14-4-5 overall record and fell just short of playing in another West Regional final. The Vikings made their 13th trip to the NCAA Tournament with the 2016 and 2022 national champions appearing in the NCAA postseason for the 11th time in the last 12 seasons.

 

"I am extremely proud of this group and how they believed all season and fought until the very end today. We played well against a very tough Cal Poly Pomona team and credit to them for advancing. Margins are thin during games like these – games you want to play in – and they got the goal early in the second half," said WWU head coach Travis Connell. "We have a special group and I want to thank our seniors for all they have done for our program." 

 

The Vikings had the first scoring opportunity in the 33rd minute when a deflected clearance landed at the feet of senior forward Kyrsten McGuffey inside the 18-yard box. McGuffey got off a shot testing CPP goalkeeper Bella Hara, who made a diving save to keep the game scoreless.

 

The Broncos found the back of the net for the lone goal of the game four minutes into the second half. Tara Oper crossed the ball into the box where Marisa Salazar collected the ball in close quarters and split a pair of WWU defenders with her shot that trickled across the goal line.

 

The CPP defense recorded the shutout limiting the Vikings to three shots (all on goal). McGuffey (33'), Morgan Manalili (62') and Claire Potter (86') were credited with the Vikings shots on goal during the contest, all saved by Hara.

 

#1 Cal Poly Pomona 1, #5 Western Washington 0

NCAA Championships Second Round

Date: November 23, 2024

Field: Kellogg Stadium     Site: Pomona, CA

Attendance: 350

 

Goals by period                 1  2    Tot

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

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

Cal Poly Pomona...............  0  1  -  1

 

SCORING SUMMARY:

1.      48:58      CPP        Salazar (Oper)

 

Shots: CPP 10, WWU 3

Shots on Goal: WWU 3, CPP 3

Saves: WWU 2 (Trengove – 1), CPP 3 (Hara - 3)

Corners: WWU 2, CPP 2

Fouls: WWU 12, CPP 10

Offsides: WWU 2, CPP 1

Kits: WWU (Light Blue), CPP (White)

Updated Records: WWU (14-4-5), CPP (18-1-2)

NCAA West Seeds: WWU (#5), CPP (#1)

 

The Vikings made their 13th appearance in the NCAA Division II Championships and 11th in the last 12 seasons. WWU is the two-time NCAA II National Champion, winning titles in 2016 and 2022, while also playing in the national championship game in 2019. Western is 5-0 all-time in national quarterfinal games and 3-2 in national semifinal contests. The program owns an all-time 29-10-1 record in NCAA Championships play, winning at least one game in 11 of 13 trips to the NCAA postseason. WWU was crowned national champion in 2016 with a 24-0-1 record, capped by a 3-2 victory over Grand Valley State in Kansas City, Missouri, and earned a second star with a 2-1 win over West Chester to cap the 2022 season in Seattle.

 

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

 

 

Here is a look at the Vikings schedule and game-by-game results following Saturday's 1-0 loss at Cal Poly Pomona to end the 2024 season:

 

 

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 11 of the last 13 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 11 seasons and played for the West Region championship in nine of the last 12 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.