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Aug. 19, 2009

SPOKANE, Wash. - A year ago Western Washington won its first GNAC women's soccer title posting a 10-0-2 conference record, including a win and a draw in games with Seattle Pacific.

But the Falcons beat the Vikings 1-0 in double overtime in the West Regional final and Seattle Pacific went on to claim its first-ever NCAA Division II national title.

Both teams again figure to be among the nation's elite Division II squads this fall. Seattle Pacific begins the season as the nation's top-ranked team; the Vikings are ranked 12th.

Seattle Pacific is also the favorite to dethrone WWU as conference champions. SPU earned six of seven first-place votes in the GNAC Coaches pre-season poll and outpointed WWU 47-43. Central Washington, coming off its first winning season in almost a decade, finished third in the balloting with 34 points.

Both SPU and WWU both appear to have the talent to make a run at the national title.

The Falcons return 16 letter winners and six starters and have seven of their top nine point producers back from their national championship team.

While NCAA Division II National Player-of-the-Year Meredith Teague is among the departees, SPU still has plenty of firepower.

Teague led the Falcons in scoring a year ago with 38 points, netting 14 goals and adding 10 assists. But, coach Chuck Sekyra, who has a phenomenal coaching record of 118-11-10 in six seasons at SPU, returns four all-stars including a pair of NSCAA first team West Region picks in forwards Jocelyn Charette (5-10, Sr., Lakewood, WA - Curtis) and Amanda Johnson (5-7, Jr., Duvall, WA - Cedarcrest).

Charette finished third in the GNAC in points last season trailing only 2008 scoring champion Jill (Jensen) Webb of Saint Martin's and Teague.

She had 33 points, scoring nine goals and adding 15 assists, just one off of the GNAC single-season assist record. Johnson, who was a second team GNAC all-star, was fifth in the conference in scoring with 28 points (11 goals, 6 assists).

Also back for the Falcons are midfielder Janae Godoy (5-4, Sr., Yakima, WA - West Valley), who ranked eighth in scoring with 25 points (8 goals, 9 assists) in earning second team GNAC all-star honors, forward Kayla Stiegemeier (5-4, Sr., Rathdrum, ID - Lakeland), who had six goals and three assists, midfielder Mallorie Gertsmann (5-4, Jr., Puyallup, WA - Cascade Christian), who had four goals and one assist and midfielder Kelsey Jenkins (5-8, So., Kent, WA - Kentwood) who had two goals and four assists.

The latter three players all accomplished their scoring feats mostly off the bench.

Two other SPU players were all-stars - defender Savanna Hanson (5-8, So., Centennial, CO - Littleton), who was a GNAC honorable mention selection and goalkeeper Maddie Dickinson (5-8, Jr., Vancouver, WA - Skyview), who earned third team NSCAA West Region honors though she was left off the GNAC all-star squad.

Dickinson finished the season with a 12-1-1 record and a 0.34 goals against average, allowing just five goals in 1332 minutes.

Also back off last year's defense is Becca Woods (5-7, Jr., Beaverton, OR), who earned three assists.

Western Washington hopes to make a run at another conference title under head coach Travis Connell (71-42-8, 6 years), who was the GNAC and NSCAA West Region Coach of the Year in 2008.

Connell has a roster that includes a conference best 10 players who started at least half of WWU's games a year ago and a conference-high six returning all-stars.

The Vikings are the only team that returns two first team GNAC all-stars - forward Claire Morgan (5-7, Jr., Bellingham, WA), who ranked seventh in the conference in scoring with 23 points (8 goals, 7 assists) and midfielder Kelly Irving (5-6, Sr., Gig Harbor, WA), who had six goals and seven assists.

Forward Molly Shannon (5-10, Jr., Bellingham, WA) scored eight goals and had two assists in earning second team GNAC all-star honors. Three other players - forward Lucy Miller (5-2, Sr., Pacific Palisades, CA), midfielder Stephanie Janigo (5-4, Sr., Bellingham, WA) and defender Brynn Regan (5-9, Sr., Mercer Island, WA) - were all honorable mention selections.

Miller ranked second on the Vikings in scoring behind Morgan with 21 points, including a team-best 10 goals. Regan had two goals and one assist.

Other returning starters include forward Emily Frankland (5-4, Jr., Sammamish, WA - Skyline), who had four goals and six assists and defenders Alicia Patten (5-9, So., Seattle, WA - Holy Names Academy) and Kasey Hostetler (5-8, Sr., Richland, WA - Hanford).

One area where Western Washington will turn to someone new is at goalkeeper, where redshirt Jamie Arthurs (5-8, Fr., Richland, WA) will be the starter.

Central Washington is coming off its first winning season (10-7-3, 6-5-1, 3rd) in the eight-year history of the conference and returns a conference best 17 letter winners.

The Wildcats return eight starters and five all-stars. Forward Kaycie Hutchins (5-7, Jr., Port Orchard, WA - Bellarmine Prep), who scored four goals and had seven assists, defender Jessica Andrews (5-5, Sr., Spanaway, WA - Bethel) and goal keeper Amber Easterbrook (5-5, Sr., Kent, WA - Kentwood), who had a 0.96 GAA, seven shutouts and a .840 save percentage, were second team selections.

Earning honorable mention honors was defender Hillary Franks (5-9, So., Yakima, WA - West Valley). Another returning all-star is defender Shawnna Chastain (5-7, Sr., San Diego, CA - University City), who was an honorable mention selection in 2007 before redshirting a year ago.

The Wildcat defense may have also gotten a boost with the addition of two-time NWAACC all-star defender Brittany Chase (5-9, Jr., Snohomish, WA - Monroe) from Shoreline CC.

Saint Martin's edged Montana State Billings 25 ½ to 22 ½ points to finish fourth in the coaches poll, while Western Oregon finished sixth with 14 points, six ahead of Northwest Nazarene.

The Saints return 10 lettermen and eight starters , including Webb (5-8, Jr., Puyallup, WA - Emerald Ridge) who scored 15 goals and had eight assists in her first season after transferring from the University of Oregon.

Another ex-Duck midfielder Jenny Baker (5-6, Jr., Eatonville, WA) will join the Saints this year. Baker played in eight games for the Pac10 school in 2007.

Webb is one of four returning GNAC all-stars for the Saints. She was a first team selection; three others - midfielder Kayci Donnatelli (5-9, Jr., Seattle, WA - Highline CC), defender Cayla Dixon (5-2, Jr., Federal Way, WA) and goalkeeper Ashley Engel (5-9, So., Burien, WA - Kennedy) were honorable mention selections.

Donnatelli scored five goals last season and combined with Webb to account for 20 of her team's 29 scores. Engel posted a 1.64 goals against average.

Montana State Billings has eight returning starters, trailing only Western Washington in that category.

Midfielder Kari Foreman (5-5, Jr., Lakewood, CO - Bear Creek), who had a team-high five goals and also netted 12 points, was a second team all-star.

Two returnees were honorable mention selections - midfielder Ali Gamberg (5-5, Jr., Lakewood, CO - Wheat Ridge), who tied for the team lead in points with 13 (4 goals, 5 assists), and midfielder Danielle Ritter (5-7, Jr., Great Falls, MT - Russell), who was MSUB's fourth-leading scorer (5 goals, 2 assists) in 2007 when she earned second team all-star honors before sitting out the 2008 season due to an injury.

Another 2008 all-star defender MyKenzie Deverell (5-3, So., Camas, WA) is expected to redshirt due to an injury.

The Yellowjackets also have a solid group of incoming freshmen.

Among the 10 are midfielder Jen Larsen (5-4, Mesa, AZ - Mountain View), who scored three goals in a pair of exhibition contests, and forward Jaucelyn Richter (5-5, Billings, MT), who had three assists as MSUB beat Great Falls 4-0 and played the University of Montana to a 1-1 draw.

Western Oregon returns 15 letter winners, including six starters, in hoping to improve on last year's sixth-place finish when it posted a 7-11-2 record, including 3-7-2 in the GNAC.

Midfielder Monique Thees (5-8, So., Camano Island, WA -Stanwood) earned second team GNAC all-star honors in her freshman season, while midfielder Naomi Shimabuku (5-3, Jr., Aiea, HI - Moanalua) was an honorable mention selection.

The top returning scorer is forward Brenna Lander (5-10, Jr., Poulsbo, WA - North Kitsap), who had three goals and one assist. Goalkeeper Brittney Rigtrup (5-7, Jr., Renton, WA - Hazen) had a 1.10 goals against average and posted three shutouts.

Forward Rachelle Kliewer (5-6, Jr., Tualatin, OR), a transfer from Clackamas CC, could give a boost to the Wolf offense. She had 18 goals and seven assists in earning first team all-conference honors at Clackamas.

Northwest Nazarene hopes to rebound from a one-win 2008 campaign and has 10 letter winners and six starters back.

Three of the starters earned all-star recognition - midfielder Kim Bowen (5-3, Jr., Nampa, ID - Skyview), who had one goal and two assists, forward Stacey Beckman (5-8, Jr., Olympia, WA), who scored four of her team's 12 goals, and defender Jessie Cahill (5-5, So., Henderson, NV - Green Valley).

Bowen was a second team all-star selection, while Beckman and Cahill were honorable mention selections.

Great Northwest Coaches Poll 2008 Record Pts

1. Seattle Pacific (6) 22-1-2, 10-1-1(2nd) 47
2. Western Washington (1) 17-3-2, 10-0-2 (1st) 43
3. Central Washington 10-7-3, 6-5-1 (3rd) 34
4. Saint Martin's 6-11-2, 4-6-2 (5th) 25 1/2
5. Montana State Billings 10-10-0, 5-7-0 (4th) 22 1/2
6. Western Oregon 7-11-2, 3-7-2 (6th) 14
7. Northwest Nazarene 1-18-1, 0-12-0  (7th) 8

(Note: First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on a 7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis).

TEAM CAPSULES

CENTRAL WASHINGTON WILDCATS

Head Coach: Michael Farrand, Point Loma Nazarene '84 (61-104-15, 9 years)

Assistants: Hannah Bridges

2008 Record: 10-7-3

Conference: 6-5-1, 3rd

Returning Letter Winners: 17

Returning Starters (8): Kaycie Hutchins (F, 5-7, Jr., 4-7-15, 2nd team GNAC); Jessica Andrews (D, 5-5, Sr., 0-1-1, 2nd team GNAC); Amber Easterbrook (GK, 5-5, Sr., 0.96 GAA, 7 shutouts, 2nd team GNAC); Hillary Franks (D, 5-9, So., 1-0-2, HM GNAC); Ellie Eckroth (M, 5-2, Jr., 2-1-5); Monique Cornier (F, 6-4, Jr., 0-2-2); Amanda Biggs (D, 5-5, Jr.); Shawnna Chastain (D, 5-7, Sr., 0-1-1 in 2007, HM GNAC)

Other Key Returnees: Brittany Franks (F, 5-7, So., 5-1-11); Amy Pate (F, 5-7, So., 3-1-7); Serena Tomaso (F, 5-4, So., 3-1-7); Gwenna Carie (M, 5-6, Jr., 2-1-5); Alex Jensen (M, 5-7, So., 1-3-5); Miranda Heslep (M, 5-10, So., 1-1-3); Katelyn Scobba (F, 5-5, So., 1-0-2); Annie Weisbeck (M, 5-5, Jr.); Michelle Mohn (F, 5-6, Sr.)

Transfers: Brittany Chase (D, 5-9, Jr., Snohomish, WA - Monroe & Shoreline CC)

MONTANA STATE-BILLINGS YELLOWJACKETS

Head Coach: Don Trentham, Columbia College '99 (63-59-8, 7 years)

Assistants: Ally Stroup

2008 Record: 10-10

Conference: 5-7, 4th

Returning Letter Winners: 13

Returning Starters (8): Kari Foreman (M, 5-5, Jr., 5-2-12, 2nd team GNAC); Ali Gamberg (M, 5-5, Jr., 4-5-13, HM GNAC); Chelsea Libby (M, 5-7, Sr., 3-1-7); Amy Remsberg (D, 5-9, So., 1-2-4); Carly Valentine (M, 5-3, Jr., 1-1-3); Lauren Anderson (D, 5-4, Jr.); Jordan Fenwick (GK, 5-6, Jr., 1.70 GAA, 4 shutouts); Danielle Ritter (M, 5-7, Jr., 5-2-12 in 2007, 2nd team GNAC)

Other Key Returnees: Samantha Sandau (F, 5-2, Jr., 2-5-9); Kelly Ross (F, 5-6, So., 0-1-1); Megan Carlson (D, 5-8, Jr.); Samantha Boehm (D, 5-7, Jr.); Caitlin Differding (M, 5-4, Jr.)

Transfers: None

NORTHWEST NAZARENE CRUSADERS

Head Coach: Jamie Lindvall, The Master's '99 (31-78-6, 6 years)

Assistants: Rachel Lindvall

2008 Record: 1-18-1

Conference: 0-12-0, 7th

Returning Letter Winners: 10 (1 in 2007)

Returning Starters (6): Kim Bowen (M, 5-3, Jr., 1-2-4, 2nd team GNAC); Stacey Beckman (F, 5-8, Jr., 4-0-8, HM GNAC); Jessie Cahill (D, 5-5, So., HM GNAC); Marie Smith (D, 5-9, Jr., 2-0-4); Kendra Courcy (D, 5-6, Jr., 1-0-2); Liz Gross (D, 5-10, Jr.)

Other Key Returnees: Molly Tipton (F, 5-8, Sr., 1-2-4), Susana Contreras (M, 5-5, So.); Macey McGovert (D, 5-5, So.); McKenzie Bailey (M, 5-6, So.)

Transfers: Lacey Thompson (M, 5-7, Jr., Snohomish, WA - Shoreline CC)

SAINT MARTIN'S SAINTS

Head Coach: Rob Walker, Saint Martin's '83 (8-28-3, 2 years)

Assistants: Bre Giove

2008 Record: 6-11-2

Conference: 4-6-2, 5th

Returning Letter Winners: 10

Returning Starters (8): Jill (Jensen) Webb (F, 5-8, Jr., 15-8-38, NSCAA 3rd team West Region, Daktronics 1st team West Region, 1st team GNAC); Kayci Donnatelli (M, 5-9, Jr., 5-3-13, HM GNAC); Cayla Dixon (D, 5-2, Jr., HM GNAC); Ashley Engel (GK, 5-9, So., 1.64 GAA, HM GNAC); Aleigh Mansfield (D/M, 5-7, So., 0-4-4); Shannon White (F, 5-7, Jr., 1-0-2); Julianna Sackeyfio (M, 5-9, Jr., 0-2-2); Amber Pratt (D, 5-3, Jr.)

Other Key Returnees: Nicole Nedervelt (M, 5-10, So., 2-1-5); Jennifer Johnson (D, 5-6, So.)

Transfers: Jenny Baker (M, 5-6, Jr., Eatonville, WA - Oregon)

SEATTLE PACIFIC FALCONS

Head Coach: Chuck Sekyra, SPU '89 (118-11-10, 6 years)

Assistants: Kevin Blokker, Chalise Baysa, Arby Busey

2008 Record: 22-1-2

Conference: 10-1-1, 2nd

Returning Letter Winners: 16

Returning Starters (6): Jocelyn Charette (F, 5-10, Sr., 9-15-33, NSCAA 1st team West Region, Daktronics 2nd team West Region, 1st team GNAC); Amanda Johnson (F, 5-7, Jr., 11-6-28, NSCAA 1st team West Region, 2nd team GNAC); Janae Godoy (M, 5-4, Sr., 8-9-25, 2nd team GNAC); Savanna Hanson (D, 5-8, So., 0-2-2, HM GNAC); Becca Woods (D, 5-7, Jr., 0-3-3); Maddie Dickinson (GK, 5-8, Jr., 0.34 GAA, 10 shutouts, NSCAA 3rd team West Region,)

Other Key Returnees: Kayla Stiegemeier (F, 5-4, Sr., 6-3-15); Brandi Hamre (F, 5-7, So., 6-2-14); Mallorie Gertsmann (M, 5-4, Jr., 4-1-9); Kelsey Jenkins (M, 5-8, So., 2-4-8); Mandy Verdoia (F, 5-7, So., 0-1-1); Ali Winje (M, 5-5, Jr., 0-1-1); Heidi Laabs-Johnson (D, 5-6, So.); Janie Wurth (D, 5-7, So.); Jesslyn Rahm Kellerman (GK, 5-7, Sr., 0.45, 6 shutouts); Karen Hosler (M, 5-6, So., 0-1-1 in 2007)

Transfers: None

WESTERN OREGON WOLVES

Head Coach: Rod Fretz, Goshen, Ind. '78 (101-130-15, 13 years)

Assistants: Stan Baker, Mike Lynch, Erica Hibbard

2008 Record: 7-11-2

Conference: 3-7-2, 6th

Returning Letter Winners: 16

Returning Starters (6): Monique Thees (M, 5-8, So., 0-1-1, 2nd team GNAC); Naomi Shimabuku (M, 5-3, Jr., HM GNAC); Brenna Lander (F, 5-10, Jr., 3-1-7); Jessica Hicks (M, 5-2, Sr., 2-1-5); Jill Petersen (F/D, 5-5, Jr.); Brittney Rigtrup (GK, 5-7, Jr., 1.10, 3 shutouts)

Other Key Returnees: Sam Slezak (M, 5-6, Jr., 2-1-5); Jordann Gilmer (M, 5-2, Jr., 1-1-3); Katrina Kem (M, 5-4, So., 0-1-1); Kristie Adkins (M, 5-6, Sr.); Cori Young (M, 5-10, Jr.); Megan Herber (M, 5-3, Sr.); LaChante Horton (F, 5-5, So.); Ashley Shay (M, 5-0, So.); Janna Vander Meulen (M, 5-9, So.); Kelsie Blachly (GK, 5-7, Jr., 2.41 GAA, 1 shutout)

Transfers: Rachelle Kliewer (F, 5-6, Jr., Tualatin, OR - Clackamas)

WESTERN WASHINGTON VIKINGS

Head Coach: Travis Connell, SPU '96 (71-42-8, 6 years)

Assistants: Greg Brisbon, Kyle Langowski

2008 Record: 17-3-2

Conference: 10-0-2, 1st

Returning Letter Winners: 15

Returning Starters (10): Claire Morgan (F, 5-7, Jr., 8-7-23, NSCAA 1st team West Region, Daktronics 2nd team West Region, 1st team GNAC); Kelly Irving (M, 5-6, Sr., 6-7-19, NSCAA & Daktronics 2nd team West Region, 1st team GNAC); Molly Shannon (F, 5-10, Jr., 8-2-18, NSCAA 3rd team West Region, 2nd team GNAC); Lucy Miller (F, 5-2, Sr., 10-1-21, HM GNAC); Brynn Regan (D, 5-9, Sr., 2-1-5, HM GNAC); Stephanie Janigo (M, 5-4, Sr., HM GNAC); Emily Frankland (F, 5-4, Jr., 4-6-14); Jenny Barton (M, 5-0, Sr., 0-4-4); Alicia Patten (D, 5-9, So., 0-2-2); Kasey Hostetler (D, 5-8, Sr., 0-1-1)

Other Key Returnees: Bryn Gibson (D, 5-9, Sr., 1-1-3); Samantha Sommer (D, 5-8, Sr., 0-1-1); Meghan Woodman (D, 5-7, Sr.); Keller Haden (D, 5-9, Jr.); Emily Warman (M, 6-0, So.)

Transfers: Justina MacDowell (F, 5-5, So., Bellevue, WA- Sammamish & Southern Oregon, 2nd team Cascade in 2007); Kelly Cates (M, 5-6, So., Poulsbo, WA - North Kitsap & Southern Oregon); Katie Griffith (M, 5-4, So., Burlington, WA - Southern Oregon)