• Boxscore & Play-by-Play

ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Chuck Sekyra left a memento behind in Ellensburg, something he had carried around for nearly a year.

Junior Brandi Hamre scored the go-ahead goal and assisted on another Saturday and the Seattle Pacific women avenged last year's loss at Central Washington with a 5-1 victory in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's game at CWU Soccer Field.

The Falcons (8-1-2) jumped on CWU (3-7-1) early, scoring three times inside the opening 35 minutes, and then got a pair of insurance goals from freshman Kellie Zakrzewski (Cheney, Wash./Cheney HS) in a span of 2:37 midway through the second half.

SPU's first two goals came off set pieces. Becca Woods (Beaverton, Ore.) opened the scoring at 7:52 off a corner kick from sophomore Kendall Thoreson (Seattle, Wash./King's HS). From the center of the 6-yard box, Woods headed a shot that caromed off the post, rebounded off Wildcats goalkeeper Kori Butterfield and into the goal. That was the first goal of the season for the senior defender and the fourth of her career.

Central's Amy Pate evened the scored at 10:04 with a put-back of a deflected shot by teammate Brittany Franks.

Pate tallied two goals in last year's matchup in Ellensburg, leading the Wildcats to a 3-1 upset on Oct. 31. That result stopped an eight-game losing skid against the Falcons, who were ranked No. 6 entering last season's encounter.

“That was tough last year and we more than did it right this time,” Sekyra said. “I was proud of my team.”

This year's performance enabled Sekyra to dispose of a bad memory.

Sekyra, SPU's eighth-year head coach, kept a copy of last year's boxscore with him as a constant reminder of his team's lackluster effort.

“I'll be honest with you, I've been carrying around the boxscore from that game in my bag all year. After the game, I left it there in Ellensburg. It made me feel good to drop it off.

“I've got three boxscores I carry around with me and I got rid of one of them today.”

Determined to avoid a repeat of last season, SPU got what proved to be the winning goal less than five minutes after Pate's equalizer. With her back to the goal, Hamre (Bremerton, Wash./Central Kitsap HS) jumped to reach a Janie Wurth free kick and flicked it into the CWU net from eight yards out at 14:32. That was the fourth goal for Hamre who distributed her team-leading fifth assist on the fourth SPU tally.

Sophomore Megan Lindsay (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep) scored on a 30-yard strike into the upper corner at 34:37 to give the Falcons a 3-1 halftime advantage.

Zakrzewski converted two second-half breakaway opportunities, at 64:53 and 67:30, to cap the scoring. Those were the fourth and fifth collegiate goals for Zakrzewski, who took over the team's scoring lead.

“Our forwards were an absolute handful. They were running at people, combining and they had a level of determination to get to goal today that was fun to watch,” Sekyra described.

The Falcons were efficient, getting five goals on 18 shots. CWU attempted 12 shots, but just three of them were directly on frame.

SPU senior goalkeeper Maddie Dickinson (Vancouver, Wash./Skyview HS) made two saves in just under 77 minutes of action. She was replaced in goal for the first time this season, giving way to sophomore Brooke Yokers (Kent, Wash./Kentridge HS) at 76:58.

Butterfield stopped three shots and allowed all five goals before Wildcats backup goalkeeper Kaitlin Abrahamson took over at 75:56.

Defending GNAC champion Seattle Pacific completed the first half of the conference campaign with a 5-1-1 record to tie for first place with Western Washington. CWU has a 3-4-0 league ledger.

The Falcons return home to host Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. That is the nightcap of soccer doubleheader at Interbay Stadium that begins at 4:30 p.m. with a men's game between SPU and 21st-ranked Grand Canyon.


NCAA WOMEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, Oct. 9, 2010
CWU Soccer Field/Ellensburg, Wash.

Seattle Pacific 5, Central Washington 1

Scoring -- 1, SPU, Becca Woods (Kendall Thoreson), 7:52. 2, CWU, Amy Pate (Brittany Franks), 10:04. 3, SPU, Brandi Hamre (Janie Wurth), 14:32. 4, Megan Lindsay (Andrea Chan), 34:37. 5, SPU, Kellie Zakrzewski (Hamre), 64:53. 6, SPU, Zakrzewski, 67:30.

Shots – SPU 18, CWU 12.
Saves – SPU 2 (Maddie Dickinson 2, Brooke Yokers 0), CWU 3 (Kori Butterfield 3, Kaitlin Abrahamson 0).
Corners – SPU 5, CWU 4.
Fouls – SPU 7, CWU 10.
Offsides – SPU 0, CWU 1.
Cautions – None.
Ejections – None.
Attendance – 221.

Records –
Seattle Pacific 8-1-2, 5-1-1 GNAC
Central Washington 3-7-1, 3-4-0 GNAC

Next game –
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific
Thursday, Oct. 14, 7:00 p.m., Interbay Stadium