Tuesday, October 8, 2013

PORTLAND, Ore. – With its second victory over Seattle Pacific this season, along with a one-sided result against Simon Fraser, Western Washington remained undefeated and opened up a six-point advantage in the GNAC standings.

Central Washington also defeated SPU last week and a second victory on Saturday helped the Wildcats leapfrog the Falcons into sole possession of second place in the GNAC standings.

The Vikings held their No. 2 ranking in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America national poll for the third consecutive week. 

WWU is ranked 14th in the NCAA in scoring offense (2.82), and its goals-against average of .273 is the sixth-best mark across Division II. WWU is also the top GNAC school in terms of shutout percentage (.727, 6th) and assists (2.45, 10th).

Individually, GNAC scoring leader Catherine Miles ranks 30th in the NCAA in goals per game with .727, while Viking goalkeeper Alyssa Beauchamp is 9th in goals-against average at .293. WOU’s Amanda Rose Johnson is right behind Beauchamp in the same category, notching a figure of .393.

RECAP

While Western Washington continued its winning ways, Central Washington continued to impress with two more GNAC victories and a full six points.

Tarah Duty put CWU (7-4-0, 6-2-0 GNAC) ahead in the 13th minute against SPU on Thursday, as the header goal would be all the Wildcats would need to down the Falcons. 

Seattle Pacific’s luck did not turn around on Saturday, as an own goal against WWU spelled disaster in a 2-1 defeat. SPU (7-4-0, 5-3-0) has now lost three of its last four, but maintains a slim hold on third place in the GNAC standings with 15 points thanks to four straight wins to open conference play. All four of the Falcons’ losses this season have been by one goal. 

WWU (11-0-0, 8-0-0) took care of Simon Fraser (0-8-2, 0-6-2) on Thursday as five different Vikings scored in the 7-0 game. Victory did not come as easily against SPU on Saturday, as several key players including 2012 All-American defender Brina Sych were sidelined with injuries. Miles put the Vikings on top in just the third minute, but only an own goal by SPU separated the two teams in the 2-1 final score line.

Montana State Billings (4-4-2, 3-4-1) took a step towards a potential top-four conference finish with a dramatic late goal to salvage a draw followed by a come-from-behind 2-1 victory for four points. Heidi Greenback scored with 17 seconds left on Thursday to disappoint NNU, and then got the offense going on Saturday with the first of two MSUB goals in a 2-1 victory over SMU. Greenback earned Red Lion Offensive Player of the Week honors for her effort.

Northwest Nazarene (1-7-3, 0-5-3) had a tough pill to swallow as it twice saw a 1-0 lead evaporate in the final three minutes in a pair of 1-1 over time stalemates. Goalkeeper Argia Phillips gave a top-notch effort as she made 19 saves to provide NNU with a pair of golden opportunities to capture its first GNAC win of the season. The familiar struggle of closing games carried over for the Crusaders twice, as not even Phillips’ Red Lion Defensive Player of the Week showing was enough to propel NNU to victory.

Western Oregon (6-2-4, 4-2-2) took advantage of a vulnerable SPU team, as four points for the Wolves last week have them knocking on the door of third place in the standings.

Saint Martin’s (3-8-0, 2-6-0) suffered a blow to its postseason chances with two losses last week. The Saints fell to WOU 1-0 on Thursday, before allowing MSU Billings to rally on Saturday in a tough 2-1 loss. In sixth place with six points, the season isn’t lost just yet for SMU, but the Saints will have to win the majority of their final six contests to have a shot at a postseason berth.

UP NEXT

Seattle Pacific has a crucial road trip ahead as it tries to turn around its current negative trend with matches against NNU Thursday and MSU Billings on Saturday. 

The Yellowjackets are very much alive in the bid for a postseason berth, and will look to be the first new team in the top-four since the third week of conference play. MSU Billings hosts a red-hot CWU team Thursday and a frustrated SPU team Saturday in what should be two of the top matches of the week. 

Another match to keep an eye on is slated for Monmouth as Western Oregon hosts Western Washington on Saturday. The Wolves are just one point behind SPU and will try their hand at tainting the less-than-full-strength Vikings’ perfect record.

Simon Fraser challenges WOU and SMU on the road, and NNU hosts SPU and CWU as both are in search of their first GNAC wins of 2013.