Tuesday, November 8, 2016

PORTLAND – With the men’s and women’s soccer brackets set on Monday’s selection shows, GNAC Insider welcomed three representatives from the five GNAC squads advancing to the post season for Tuesday night’s show at 7 p.m. (Pacific).

Simon Fraser head coach Clint Schneider returned to the show for a second time. Schneider’s Clan was undefeated through 15 matches this year and was ranked as high as No. 2 in Division II. The Clan is the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Men’s Soccer West Regional Tournament and will host at Seattle Pacific’s Interbay Stadium. Simon Fraser will face the winner of No. 4 Sonoma State and No. 5 Cal Poly Pomona, who will play on Thursday. The Clan already beat Cal Poly Pomona once this year in part of a 14-match winning streak for Simon Fraser. Schneider is in his second year as the head coach.

The No. 1 seed on the women’s side is also a GNAC team as Western Washington will host playoff matches for the fourth year in a row. The Vikings was represented on GNAC Insider by GNAC Defender of the Year Emily Webster. As a defensive midfielder, Webster has been a big reason the Vikings have only allowed six goals all season. She also takes most of the Vikings’ free kicks, where she has been a huge value to her team with three goals and six assists.

GNAC Insider was also joined by Central Washington’s First Team All-GNAC unanimous selection Keilin Farrand, who has helped the Wildcats reach its first-ever NCAA postseason. The senior midfielder tallied five goals and six assists in the regular season and helped the team go on a five-match winning streak to start the season, which was the best start to a season in program history. After having that streak snapped, the Wildcats added another eight-match unbeaten streak that clinched a spot in the GNAC Championships. In the West Regional Playoffs, the No. 5-seeded Wildcats will face No. 4 Seattle Pacific for a fourth time this year. The winner will face No. 1 Western Washington.

The GNAC is also represented in the playoffs by the Western Washington men’s soccer team, which won its last five matches of the season including wins over each of what were the top three teams in the GNAC standings to move into second place. The Vikings will face Dixie State in the first round on Friday in La Jolla, Calif.