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Oct. 20, 2009

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - With virtually no room for error if it is to make a second straight NCAA Division II national tournament appearance, the Western Washington University women's soccer team closes out its regular-season with four Great Northwest Athletic Conference contests.

That stretch begins Saturday when the Vikings entertain Montana State Billings on Saturday (7 p.m.) at Orca Field on the campus of Whatcom Community College.

Western, 9-4-2 overall and leading the GNAC at 6-1-1, one point ahead of nationally No.4-ranked Seattle Pacific (6-1-0), then have their second meeting of the season with the Falcons on Wednesday, Oct. 28 (7 p.m.) at Interbay Stadium.

A league title would give Western an automatic berth in the West Regional playoffs. The Vikings were ranked seventh in the first official regional poll and would probably need to be rated fifth in the final rating to receive an at-large berth

It's been a season of highs and lows for Western, which was ranked No.12 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/NCAA II Top 25 Preseason Poll but did not post a win in its first three games (0-2-1), all at home.

The Vikings then ran off a seven-game unbeaten streak (6-0-1) that included five shutouts, capped by a 3-2 win over then nationally No.1-rated Seattle Pacific on Oct. 3, snapping a 21-game winning streak and a 27-game unbeaten streak by the Falcons. The three goals are the only ones allowed this season by Seattle Pacific (Oct. 21 vs. Montana State Billings, Oct. 24 at Cal State Dominguez Hills), which is 13-1-0 overall.

The exhilaration over that victory, one of the biggest in school history, was short-lived as two days later Western lost 2-1 at Saint Martin's and then was beaten 5-0 at No.14 UC San Diego.

But the veteran Vikings refused to fold, rebounding to post three straight shutout road wins against Grand Canyon, 2-0; Central Washington, 2-0 and Western Oregon, 1-0.

Western midfielder Kelly Irving (Sr., Gig Harbor) had the game-winning goal against Grand Canyon and was credited with assists on the game-winning goals versus Central Washington and Western Oregon.

Irving leads the GNAC with seven assists and has 25 during her four-year career, one short of the school record of 26 held by Cindy Gordon (1981-84).

Goalkeeper Kylie Broadbent (Sr., Spokane/Lewis & Clark) ranks second among league leaders in shutouts with seven and goals against average at 0.81, and is fourth in save percentage at .763. She has 15 career shutouts.

Forward Emily Frankland (Jr., Sammamish/Skyline) has scored a team-leading six goals for the Vikings and is tied for third in the GNAC with three game-winning goals. Forward Molly Shannon (Jr., Bellingham) has five goals, scoring game winners in each of the last two games.

Montana State Billings (Oct. 21 at Seattle Pacific) is 8-5-1 overall and third in the GNAC standings at 4-2-0. The Yellowjackets have the league's top scorer in Jaucelyn Richter with 24 points (9 goals, 5 assists).

Seattle Pacific leads the nation in shutout percentage (.925) and is third in goals against average (0.21). The Falcons lead the GNAC in practically every team statistical category.

SPU goalkeeper Maddie Dickinson leads the nation in goals against (0.00) and save percentage (100.0), working on a GNAC-record streak of 873 minutes and seven seconds not allowing a goal, and Falcon forward Jocelyn Charette is second among league scoring leaders with 20 points (8 goals, 4 assists).

Notes: Western is 6-0-1 in its series with Montana State Billings and 3-12-2 against Seattle Pacific, but 2-1-1 in the last four meetings ... The Vikings' win over Seattle Pacific snapped a 21-game winning streak and a 27-game unbeaten streak by the Falcons ... Western's loss at Saint Martin's ended its 21-game unbeaten streak in GNAC counters (18-0-3) ... Western won last year's GNAC title with a 10-0-2 record and reached the championship game of the Far West Regional, losing 1-0 in overtime to Seattle Pacific ... The Vikings, coached by Travis Connell (7th year, 80-46-10), were ranked No.12 in the NSCAA/NCAA II Preseason Poll.