• Boxscore & Play-by-Play

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Lucy Miller scored with less than nine minutes left to play Saturday, lifting Western Washington to a 3-2 women's soccer victory at Orca Field that snapped the 27-game unbeaten streak of top-ranked Seattle Pacific.

The Vikings improved to 6-2-2 overall with a 4-0-1 Great Northwest Athletic Conference record. They scored three times against the Falcons, who had not allowed a goal all season. SPU dropped to 10-1 and 4-1 in conference play.

“It's weird to see three goals go in the net after the way we started this year. None in 10 games and then three in one game,” said SPU coach Chuck Sekyra.

Miller's game-winning tally at 81:33 came off a pass from Kelly Irving, who was also credited with an assist on WWU's opening goal. Irving's pass traveled between the referees' legs right to Miller, who sent a 25-yard strike off the outstretched hands of SPU goalkeeper Jesslyn Rahm Kellerman and into the right side netting.

The Falcons had not yielded three goals in a game since they lost 3-0 to UC San Diego on Nov. 4, 2006 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The fourth-longest shutout streak in NCAA Division II history was halted at 11 games and the nation's longest winning streak was stopped at 21. SPU's last defeat was a 1-0 decision at Western Washington on Sept. 20, 2008.

The Falcons have lost just twice in the last two seasons, both setbacks coming against the Vikings in Bellingham. SPU has a 32-0-2 record in its other games over the last two years.

The defending NCAA Division II champion Falcons surrendered their first goal since the 55th minute of the 2008 national semifinal game on Dec. 4. When WWU's Emily Frankland found the goal amidst traffic near the right post at 4:59, she halted the scoreless streak of 1,048-minutes, 6-seconds compiled by the Seattle Pacific defense.

SPU evened the score at 1-1 on an unassisted goal by junior Amanda Johnson (Duvall, Wash./Cedarcrest HS) at 10:48. She chest-trapped the ball before quickly lofting a 30-yard shot into the Western net for her third goal of the season.

The Vikings regained the lead at 22:46, gaining a 2-1 advantage they would take into halftime. Molly Shannon volleyed a 12-yard shot at the right post off passes from Frankland and Bryn Gibson.

“That team came out and outworked us in the first half. They definitely deserved what they got,” Sekyra said. “I loved how we battled back in the second half. I thought we were going to pull that one out and was proud of how our kids performed in the second half.”

The Falcons equalized at 2-2 on the third goal of the season by freshman Megan Lindsay (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep HS). She held off a WWU defender and found the net from 10 yard away off an assist from sophomore Kelsey Jenkins (Kent, Wash./Kentwood HS), who had dribbled 25 yards before distributing to Lindsay.

SPU lost Saturday despite outshooting the Vikings 18-13. WWU goalkeeper Kylie Broadbent stopped six shots while Kellerman (Eugene, Ore.) made three saves.

Defending GNAC champion Western Washington has not lost in 21 consecutive GNAC contest, including three ties. The Vikings and SPU played to a 1-1 draw last season in Seattle.  The Falcons beat WWU 1-0 on Nov. 20, in the third-round of the 2008 NCAA Tournament.

The Seattle Pacific women return home for a rare weekday afternoon game on Tuesday, Oct. 6 at Interbay Stadium. The Falcons host BYU Hawaii at 1 p.m.


NCAA Women's Soccer
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Orca Field/Bellingham, Wash.

Western Washington 3, (#1) Seattle Pacific 2

Scoring -- 1, WWU, Emily Frankland (Kelly Irving), 4:59. 2, SPU, Amanda Johnson, 10:48. 3, WWU, Molly Shannon (Bryn Gibson, Emily Frankland), 22:46. 4, SPU, Megan Lindsay (Kelsey Jenkins), 66:02. 5, WWU, Lucy Miller (Kelly Irving), 81:33.

Shots – SPU 18, WWU 13.
Saves – SPU 3 (Jesslyn Rahm Kellerman), WWU 6 (Kylie Broadbent).
Corner kicks – SPU 3, WWU 6.
Fouls – SPU 12, WWU 9.
Offsides – SPU 0, WWU 0.
Attendance -- 450.

Records
Seattle Pacific 10-1-0,  4-1-0 GNAC
Western Washington 6-2-2,  4-0-1 GNAC

Next game
BYU Hawaii at Seattle Pacific
Tuesday, Oct. 3, 1:00 p.m., Interbay Stadium