Western Washington women’s soccer used a 90th-minute own goal to take a 2-1 victory over Northwest Nazarene in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action on Saturday, Oct. 7 at Harrington Field.
The win propelled the Vikings into celebration as they unveiled the previous season’s national championship banner earlier in the day.
The Vikings (5-3-3, 3-1-2 GNAC) have looked to avoid a championship hangover but have already lost and tied as many games in conference play as they did the entirety of last year.
The game got off to a rocky start when Western freshman Olivia Connell scored an own goal to put the Vikings down 1-0 in the 4th minute.
Current Western women’s soccer players pose with the new national championship banner at Harrington Field. (Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
Western refused to hang their heads as the midfield trio of Payton Neal, Gracen Crosby and Mie Cairns began to dominate in the midfield. The three were first to every ball, helping the team create constant energy.
Vikings head coach Travis Connell was pleased with the energy his team showed.
“The other team has a lot of dangerous players, but we certainly had an advantage in the midfield and it showed today for most of the match,” Connell said.
With Western controlling the pace, they looked closer and closer to getting an equalizer. In the 23rd minute, junior Halle Noel took a corner that found a back-post runner, and Bellingham local, senior Jayden Nguyen, headed the ball in for the goal.
“We’ve actually been practicing this all week,” Nguyen said about the set-piece goal. “We know Halle plays great balls to the back post.”
Western’s Jayden Nguyen, far left, heads the ball in for a goal. (Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
The score remained tied at halftime.
Jayden Nguyen led a group of energized Vikings into the second half, putting in great balls, winning headers, making tackles and communicating well with teammates.
“Jayden is fantastic,” Connell said. “When she scored that goal, there was no stopping her the rest of the way.”
The Nighthawks goalkeeper Bailey Blancett made a great save on Morgan Manalili early in the second half, but Western continued to dominate.
Manalili had a stroke of bad luck, hitting the crossbar twice; once in the 63rd minute and another in the 78th. She also had a goal called back on a close offsides call in the first period.
Nguyen praised the Vikings’ fight and grit to win the ball back.
“It made it a lot easier for us to go forward,” she said.
Western goalie Claire Henninger, in white, punches the ball away during a corner kick by Northwest Nazarene. (Andy Bronson/Cascadia Daily News)
Western forced five corners and took nine shots in the frame. A draw looked likely for the Vikings.
With minutes to play, Western threw numbers forward. With 30 seconds left, forward Claire Potter found a little space and lifted a ball into the box that Mie Cairns looked to score on.
As Cairns’ shot went a little high and hit the crossbar, she pressed to win the rebound. Nighthawks’ defender Gracie Mares attempted to clear the ball but accidentally headed it into her own goal.
It wasn’t what they expected, but the Vikings got their 90th-minute winner.
“The whole second half we were creating chance after chance that it was a matter of if we were going to get one in,” Connell said. “And in the end, they helped us out.”
Western starts the final month of the regular season by traveling to Montana State University Billings for a 3 p.m. game Thursday, Oct. 12.
