BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's soccer team suffers their first loss of the 2024 season in Bellingham, Wash. as they are downed by Western Washington University 2-0 Sunday afternoon.

INSIDE THE MATCH UP
Final:  UCCS 0, WWU 2
Records: UCCS 0-1-1 (0-0-0 RMAC), WWU 1-0-1 (0-0-0 GNAC)
Location: Harrington Field | Bellingham, Wash.
Series: The Vikings of Western Washington win the first ever match up between the two programs.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Western Washington had a golden opportunity just three minutes into the contest when a free kick was whistled just outside the UCCS penalty area, but freshman keeper Alexa Malaspina was ready for the challenge as she tipped it to herself to make the save. However, the Vikings would reload quickly as they came right back down the field after Malaspina's punt, cut through the defense and scored off the foot of Morgan Manalili to grab the early advantage 1-0.
• The Mountain Lions tried to respond right back just over a minute later when they earned a throw in deep in the Vikings end. The throw in was perfectly placed in front of goal by Mikaela Carlson, but the ball got lost in the feet of Fie Steenberg, allowing the Vikings to regroup and force a goal kick.
• Another promising chance for the Vikings came in the 14^th minute when the offense again broke into the attacking third. A shot was sent toward the lower left corner of the net, but Malaspina stayed patient in goal for UCCS, made the read and the save to force a corner kick. Moments later Malaspina was ready once again to punch out the service from the corner and clear the Mountain Lions defense from further damage.
• Fast forward to the 36^th minute and again it was the Vikings trying to double their first half lead. Several Vikings played pitch-and-catch down into the Mountain Lion penalty area and drew Malaspina out of position as she tried to cut off the shooting angle. Luckily, freshman defender Malia Groshong was able to slide into the goal mouth and deflect the shot wide to the left so her teammates could sweep out the pressure.
• As the halftime whistle rang out, the teams went to the room with the Vikings still with the upper hand at 1-0. Despite being out paced early, UCCS began to put pressure on the Vikings as the half drew on and looked to build on that progress at the break.
• The Vikings, again, earned the first quality chance in the second half, though this time it wasn't until the 63^rd minute when Malaspina was called into action to tip a Lydia Myers shot over the top of her cage. However, when Western Washington restarted play with the corner kick, it was Myers that struck the loose ball into the net to double the Vikings lead.
• UCCS had several positive build ups in the second half of play but could never get the ball into a truly dangerous position as the Vikings were able to keep the black jerseys in the wings in the attacking third. The first real opportunity for the Mountain Lion offense in the latter half came with just under thirteen minutes to play when Fie Steenberg's free kick found its way on frame. Despite the strong shot from the Danish forward, it still was an easy save for WWU keeper Abigail Trengove.
• Ninety seconds later Steenberg was on the march again, sending a pretty pass ahead of Brooke Pavlich who pulled the trigger on a shot that hit off the outside of the net. Despite going wide, the chance was by far the Mountain Lions' best during the regular run of play all afternoon.
• The Mountain Lions had one last shot at the Viking net with just over two minutes to play and again it was Pavlich trying to deny the clean sheet, but it was no matter from Trengove as she was equal to the test.

STATS FROM THE DAY

• The Vikings dominated the offensive metrics on Sunday, leading the Mountain Lions in shot attempts (18-7), shots on goal (6-3), and corner kicks (4-1).
• Goal scorer Lydia Myers lead the way offensively for both sides with four shots, three of which landed on target. Her goal was her first in a Western Washington uniform.
• The match displayed a great deal of physicality from both squads, there were 20 fouls whistled throughout the afternoon with UCCS on the hook for 12 infractions to the Vikings eight.

BEYOND THE BOX

•  UCCS begins the season identically to their start in 2023 as they open on the road with a draw-loss form before returning to Colorado Springs for their first home match.
• Western Washington has started their season 1-0-1 in four out of the last five years, with the lone exception being last fall when the Vikings opened 1-1.
• Malaspina wraps up her second collegiate appearance with four saves for the second straight match, having saved four chances on Thursday night at Western Oregon as well.

UP NEXT

• The Mountain Lions open at home on Thursday as they get set for a NCAA tournament first-round rematch with the Rattlers of St. Mary's University.

SOCIAL
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
 
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