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BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Estera Levinte came off the bench to score one goal and assist on two others for 10th-ranked Western Washington, which solidified its position atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's soccer standings with a 3-0 win over second-place Seattle Pacific on Thursday at Harrington Field.
 
Levinte generated a goal for teammate Jenna Killman in the 38th minute. Less than four minutes later, she assisted on Darby Doyle's 42nd-minute strike. Levinte got a goal of her own 10 minutes after halftime with a dynamic dribbling run and fine finish.
 
"I liked our attitude and our effort tonight, but we ran into a buzz saw," said SPU coach Arby Busey. "Western Washington was absolutely ruthless in front of goal and that's the sign of a great team, especially at home. They got that first one and then tacked on a second one. That second one cut pretty deep."
 
Each goalkeeper was credited with three saves, but with drastically different results. Western's Natalie Dierickx recorded her seventh shutout while SPU's Riley Travis was tabbed with the loss after yielding three goals.
 
Top of the Table
The Vikings (12-2-0) remained perfect in league play, improving to 8-0-0. They have outscored GNAC opponents by a combined 35-1 margin.
 
SPU (8-6-0) saw its three-game winning streak stopped and moved to 6-2-0 in conference play.
 
These are the two dominant GNAC school, having captured 15 of 18 all-time regular-season crowns. The Falcons are eight-time champions and Western won seven titles.
 
They are the only teams in the conference to have won NCAA Division II women's soccer championships. SPU was the national titlist in 2008 and the Vikings in 2016.
 
The Northwest rivals meet again in two weeks. They clash at Interbay Stadium in Seattle on Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. The Falcons will try to defeat Western for the first time since 2012, having gone 0-15-3 in matchups then.
 
Despite the lack of recent success in the series, Busey relishes the high level of play the rivalry produces.
 
"I really enjoy these games. You've got two teams that really challenge each other and bring out the best in each other.
 
"It wouldn't necessarily be good for my ego, but I'd love to play them every game because it gets the heart racing. These are fun games for us to coach in and the girls to play in. We'll be excited to face them again here in a couple weeks."
 
Competitive Early Action
 

The Falcons first shot came 19:05 into the contest on a set piece. Ava Giovanola served a free kick from the right flank that was headed at the top of the 6-yard box by Mariah Alexander, but directly to the Western goalkeeper.
 
That briefly evened the shot count, 1-1, before the Vikings Karli White went on a dribbling run into the left side of the box toward the end line one minute later. She spun and fired a hard shot into the left outside-netting.
 
With 13 minutes left in the first half SPU's Chloe Gellhaus delivered the best shot for either team to that point. She received a lateral pass from Sophia Chilczuk just outside the box and lofted the ball just over the crossbar.
 
Late First-Half Goals
Then Levinte took over, beginning with a multi-faceted role on the initial scoring play. She hustled to pressure SPU defender Samea Aljundi into a misplay, earning a Vikings throw-in deep on the left sideline. Talia Daigle flung the throw-in to Levinte, who let it run before one-touching a pass into the box.
 
Killman took a quick touch to her left before blasting a 13-yard shot past the diving Travis and into the top right corner at 37:08.
 
"In games like this, seizing that momentum that a goal will bring you is huge. They were able to do that right at the tail end of the first half and built right on it," Busey said. "Two teams that are as familiar with each other as both are, two programs that are storied as they are, that first goal in these kind of matchups is big for whatever team gets it.
 
"And it was big for them tonight to be able to use that momentum to turn one into two."
 
Western doubled its lead at 41:06 after another outstanding effort from Levinte. She beat a defender on the dribble down the left wing and swerved into the box before slipping a pass toward the center. Doyle raced to reach the ball and first-timed a right-footed laser into the back of the net.
 
Those were the only two shots on frame during the opening 45 minutes for Western, which maximized its chances. The halftime shot count was 5-3 in favor of the hosts.
 
Second Half Summary
 

"We did a decent job of coming back and starting the second half with some energy and did our best to try to claw our way back in that game," Busey described.
 
Just two minutes after intermission, the visitors threatened. Gellhaus dribbled deep into WWU territory with a defender on her shoulder and launched a shot toward the left post that was easily handled by Dierickx.
 
In the 55th minute a scramble in the box brought the Western 'keeper off her line. Megan Moore chipped a 16-yard shot toward the open goal, but the ball trickled inches wide of the right post.
 
Levinte capped the scoring at 55:35. She collected the ball 30 yards from goal and beat a defender on a drive into the box. As another defender converged, Levinte unleashed an eight-yard shot that caromed off Travis on its way into the goal.
 
The visitors kept pursuing a goal, and trailed just 16-10 in the final shot comparison.
 
In the 72nd minute, Chilczuk sent a low drive from the top right of the box that was snared by the Vikings goalkeeper. That was the Falcons' final attempt.
 
Next Game
After bussing home from Bellingham, the SPU women quickly turn around tomorrow and fly to Montana for a Saturday matchup with Montana State Billings. Kick-off is 11 a.m. Pacific Time, just 38 hours after Thursday's game ended.
 
"We're going to have to use the limited time that we have to really recover the best that we can," said Busey. "It's a tight window, a quick turnaround, but we knew that that was the case as soon as the schedule came out. Mentally, we're prepared to do it. It's just going to be a tall order physically, because we expended a lot of effort and a lot of energy tonight.
 
"It's part of the GNAC schedule that we've got to solve. I have every confidence that the seniors on this team that have done it before will provide great leadership and will show up ready to go on Saturday."
 
Saturday is the final scheduled road game for the Falcons, who complete the regular season with three consecutive home contests at Interbay Stadium. That closing stretch begins with a Nov. 2 encounter versus Western Oregon at 1 p.m.
 
NCAA WOMEN'S SOCCER
Thursday, October 24, 2019
Harrington Field / Bellingham, Wash.
 
at (#10) Western Washington 3, Seattle Pacific 0
 
Scoring – 1, WWU, Jenna Killman (Estera Levinte/Talia Daigle), 37:08; 2, WWU, Darby Doyle (Levinte), 41:06; 3, Levinte (unassisted), 55:35.
 
                        1   2  --  TOTAL
Seattle Pacific         0   0  --    0
Western Washington      2   1  --    3
 
Shots – SPU 10, WWU 16.
Shots on Goal – SPU 3, WWU 6.
Saves – SPU 3 (Riley Travis), WWU 3 (Natalie Dierickx).
Corner Kicks – SPU 4, WWU 5.
Fouls – SPU 8, WWU 8.
Offsides – SPU 0, WWU 2.
 
Records
Seattle Pacific 8-6-0,  6-2-0 GNAC
Western Washington 12-2-0,  8-0-0 GNAC
 
Next SPU Women's Soccer Game
Seattle Pacific at Montana State Billings
Saturday, Oct. 26, 11:00 a.m. PDT
Yellowjacket Soccer Field / Billings, Mont.