BELLINGHAM, Wash. – In a battle of two nationally ranked teams, No. 9 Western Washington University defeated No. 24 Simon Fraser University 2-0 Saturday night in GNAC play at Harrington Field.
The Vikings went up 1-0 on an own goal with just over three minutes remaining in the first half and scored an insurance goal midway through the second half to defeat SFU extending their lead atop the GNAC standings with 22 points (7-0-1).
WWU improved to 9-1-3 overall with its sixth consecutive win, stretching its unbeaten streak to 11 straight games. Western's defense held the high-scoring SFU offense without a goal for the ninth shutout of the season.
After a scoreless first 42 minutes of action the Vikings got on the scoreboard via a Simon Fraser own goal. Junior forwards Emily Holdridge and Arriannah Kingpressured the Red Leafs back line, creating chaos in front of the goal with a deflected ball landing in the back of the net to put the Vikings up 1-0 at the 42:38 mark.
Clinging to the 1-0 lead, WWU sophomore goalkeeper Ellie McGowan made a diving save in the 54th minute to preserve the shoutout.
Western scored a key insurance goal in 64th minute when senior midfielder Mie Cairns connected on a header inside the six-yard box following a corner kick from freshman midfielder Ariana Lopez.
Defenders Olivia Connell and Ella Witherspoon, along with Cairns, played all 90 minutes leading the Vikings strong defensive effort.
SFU held a 9-4 advantage in total shots and each team recorded four shots on goal. The Red Leafs dropped to 7-3-2 overall and remains in second place in the GNAC standings with 16 points (5-2-1).
The first-place Vikings (9-1-3, 7-0-1 GNAC) remain at home next week closing out the regular-season schedule of games at Harrington Field hosting Saint Martin's on Thursday (7 pm) and Western Oregon on Saturday (2 pm). The game vs. WOU will be Grad Night with seven Vikings celebrated playing their final regular-season home game. The complete 2026 schedule can be viewed online via wwuvikings.com/WSOC.
WWU extended its winning streak to six consecutive games and is undefeated over its last 11 games (8-0-3) … overall the Vikings have just one loss in 13 games in 2026 … defense posted ninth shutout of the season with seventh clean sheet in last eight games … WWU has not allowed more than one goal in a game this season for a 0.31 goals against average … Vikings extended their unbeaten streak in GNAC contests to 37 consecutive games, going 30-0-7 during this stretch dating to the end of the 2023 season … Vikings lead the all-time series vs. Simon Fraser 50-19-5 with an 19-8-2 mark in home games vs. the Red Leafs … over last 35 match-ups vs. SFU since 2010, WWU is 29-2-4 … Vikings make the trip to Burnaby Mountain on October 29 … WWU improved to 5-1-2 in home games this season and is 105-8-13 all-time at Harrington Field.
#9 Western Washington 2, #24 Simon Fraser 0
Date: October 10, 2026
Field: Harrington Field Site: Bellingham, WA
Attendance: 417
Goals by period 1 2 Tot
-----------------------------------------------
Simon Fraser.................. 0 0 - 0
Western Washington............ 1 1 - 2
SCORING SUMMARY:
1. 42:38 WWU Own Goal
2. 63:58 WWU Cairns (Connell)
Shots: SFU 9, WWU 4
Shots on Goal: WWU 4, SFU 4
Saves: WWU 4 (McGowan – 4), SFU 3 (Piperni - 3)
Corners: WWU 1, SFU 0
Fouls: WWU 14, SFU 13
Offsides: WWU 3, SFU 3
Kits: WWU (Navy Blue), SFU (Red)
Updated Records: WWU (9-1-3, 7-0-1), SFU (7-3-2, 5-2-1)
Here is a look at Western's record breakdown for the 2026 season:
|
2026 RECORD BREAKDOWN
|
|
Overall Record
|
9-1-3
|
|
Streak
|
W6
|
|
Home
|
5-1-2
|
|
Away
|
4-0-1
|
|
Neutral
|
0-0-0
|
|
GNAC Record
|
7-0-1
|
|
Non-Conference
|
2-1-2
|
|
Ranked Opponents
|
2-1-0
|
|
Scoring First
|
7-0-1
|
|
Opponent Scores First
|
1-1-0
|
|
Lead at the Half
|
5-0-0
|
|
Tied at the Half
|
3-0-3
|
|
Trail at the Half
|
0-1-0
|
|
Record by Kit
|
|
White
|
1-0-0
|
|
Navy Blue
|
3-0-1
|
|
Light Blue
|
5-1-0
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Here is a look at the results and updated standings following Thursday's games to close the fourth week of conference games. The top four teams in the standings at the conclusion of the regular season advance to play in the 2026 GNAC Championships held November 5-7 at Interbay Stadium in Seattle. Updated conference standings, schedules, results and statistics can be found online at GNACsports.com.
|
|
School
|
Points
|
GNAC
|
Pct.
|
Overall
|
Pct.
|
Home
|
Away
|
Neutral
|
Streak
|
Last 10
|
|
1.
|
Western Washington
|
22
|
7-0-1
|
.938
|
9-1-3
|
.808
|
5-1-2
|
4-0-1
|
0-0-0
|
W6
|
8-0-2
|
|
2.
|
Simon Fraser
|
16
|
5-2-1
|
.688
|
7-3-2
|
.667
|
3-1-0
|
3-2-2
|
1-0-0
|
L1
|
6-2-2
|
|
3.
|
Seattle Pacific
|
14
|
4-2-2
|
.625
|
7-3-2
|
.667
|
2-1-1
|
5-2-1
|
0-0-0
|
T1
|
5-3-2
|
|
4.
|
Central Washington
|
11
|
3-3-2
|
.500
|
3-6-4
|
.385
|
2-1-3
|
1-4-1
|
0-1-0
|
W1
|
3-4-3
|
|
5.
|
Montana State Billings
|
8
|
2-4-2
|
.375
|
2-5-5
|
.375
|
0-4-3
|
2-1-2
|
0-0-0
|
T1
|
2-5-3
|
|
|
Northwest Nazarene
|
8
|
2-4-2
|
.375
|
2-7-3
|
.292
|
1-2-1
|
1-5-2
|
0-0-0
|
L2
|
2-6-2
|
|
7.
|
Western Oregon
|
6
|
1-4-3
|
.312
|
2-6-4
|
.333
|
1-3-2
|
1-2-2
|
0-1-0
|
T1
|
2-5-3
|
|
8.
|
Saint Martin's
|
4
|
1-6-1
|
.188
|
2-9-2
|
.231
|
1-5-0
|
1-3-1
|
0-1-1
|
T1
|
1-7-2
|
|
This Week's GNAC Schedule
|
|
Thursday, October 8:
Seattle Pacific 3, at Western Oregon 1
Western Washington 1, at Northwest Nazarene 0
Simon Fraser 2, at Central Washington 2
Saint Martin's 1, at Montana State Billings 0
Saturday, October 10:
Saint Martin's 0, at Western Oregon 0
at Central Washington 3, Northwest Nazarene 1
Seattle Pacific 0, at Montana State Billings 0
at Western Washington 2, Simon Fraser 0
|
Here is a look at the Vikings 2026 schedule and game-by-game results:
|
DATE
|
OPPONENT
|
LOCATION / VENUE
|
RESULT
|
|
8/27 (Thu.)
|
Hawai'i Hilo
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
W, 2-0
|
|
8/30 (Sun.)
|
UC Colorado Springs (#10)
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
L, 0-1
|
|
9/4 (Fri.)
|
@Cal State Monterey Bay
|
Seaside, CA (Cardinale Stadium)
|
T, 0-0
|
|
9/7 (Mon.)
|
@Cal State East Bay
|
Alameda, CA (Oakland Roots Facility)
|
W, 3-1
|
|
9/13 (Sun.)
|
Colorado School of Mines
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
T, 1-1
|
|
9/17 (Thu.)
|
Northwest Nazarene GNAC
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
W, 1-0
|
|
9/19 (Sat.)
|
Central Washington GNAC
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
T, 0-0
|
|
9/24 (Thu.)
|
Montana State Billings GNAC
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
W, 3-0
|
|
9/26 (Sat.)
|
Seattle Pacific GNAC (#23)
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
W, 3-0
|
|
10/1 (Thu.)
|
@Western Oregon GNAC
|
Monmouth, OR (WOU Soccer Field)
|
W, 2-0
|
|
10/3 (Sat.)
|
@Saint Martin's GNAC
|
Lacey, WA (SMU Soccer Field)
|
W, 2-1
|
|
10/8 (Thu.)
|
@Northwest Nazarene GNAC
|
Nampa, ID (NNU Soccer Field)
|
W, 1-0
|
|
10/10 (Sat.)
|
Simon Fraser GNAC (#24)
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
W, 2-0
|
|
10/15 (Thu.)
|
Saint Martin's GNAC
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
7:00 pm
|
|
10/17 (Sat.)
|
Western Oregon GNAC
|
Bellingham, WA (Harrington Field)
|
2:00 pm
|
|
10/22 (Thu.)
|
@Seattle Pacific GNAC
|
Seattle, WA (Interbay Stadium)
|
7:00 pm
|
|
10/24 (Sat.)
|
@Montana State Billings GNAC
|
Billings, MT (Yellowjacket Field)
|
12:00 pm(MT)
|
|
10/29 (Thu.)
|
@Simon Fraser GNAC
|
Burnaby, BC (Terry Fox Field)
|
7:00 pm
|
|
10/31 (Sat.)
|
@Central Washington GNAC
|
Ellensburg, WA (Tomlinson Stadium)
|
11:00 am
|
|
GNAC Championships (Seattle, WA)
|
|
Nov. 5 (Thu.)
|
GNAC Semifinal
|
Seattle, WA (Interbay Stadium)
|
|
|
Nov. 7 (Sat.)
|
GNAC Final
|
Seattle, WA (Interbay Stadium)
|
|
