ELLENSBURG, Wash. (Sept. 22) – The Central Washington University women's soccer team (1-4-2, 1-1-0) fell to Seattle Pacific University (6-1-0, 2-0-0) in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference match.
 
Bailey Martoncik got the first two shots of the game, firing one just wide and another high.  The Wildcats' offense rung the frame of the goal more than once over the course of 90 minutes, but could not slip a shot over the goal line.
 
"I think it was a good game," CWU Assistant Coach Madison Kroger said afterward.  "It was a good matchup between two strong teams.  In the first 15 minutes we came out flying.  We had good ideas throughout the game, but both goals we gave up, we switched off.  This is a fantastic game for us with a full week of GNAC matches ahead.  We are looking to build off of what we saw this game and improve on it next week.  We were a bit unlucky, but I think we can get better.  Our clinical tidiness in the final third needs to be better and defensively, we need to be a bit more solid."
 
Megan Moore found the shot chart first for Seattle Pacific.  Moore's shot in near the end of the fourth minute of play was stopped by Emily Thomson.  After an offside call against SPU, Moore got another chance, but it went wide.
 
The Falcons offense escalated in the seventh minute, when Kasey Reeve beat everyone except the goal line on a low-angle shot inside the box.  After the ball was sent careening across the goal line, Jaylyn Jenkins stepped in and swept it away for a team save.
 
Seattle Pacific broke the level score in the 18^th minute.  Makayla Sonstelie took a long aerial pass from Kaytlin Willis and hammered her shot home from just outside the 18 for a 1-0 lead.
 
The Falcon's offense generated another shot three minutes later, but Thomson kept it out.  A pair of consecutive corner kicks from SPU generated just one shot that was turned aside by Thomson.
 
After being held quiet for 15 minutes, the Wildcat offense went back to work.  They earned a pair of corner kicks in the 28^th minute, but did not generate a shot.
 
In the 38^th minute the Wildcats fired off three shots, off of two more corners, but Riley Travis made a pair of stops in goal for SPU and Makinzie Packwood's shot rang the crossbar. 
 
Just four minutes into the second half, SPU struck again.  The Falcons were awarded a free kick on the edge of the 18 and they capitalized.  Sydnee Smith took the free kick and sent a cross into the six, which was headed goalward by Reeve for a 2-0 advantage.
 
The Wildcats got a chance to cut the deficit in half in the 74^th minute.  Lexsi Manning's corner kick found its way back to Chelsea Marozik who fired a shot from long range, but Travis came away with the save.
 
Bella Brown fired a shot just wide in the 65^th minute, just before Thomson made a save on a shot from Reeve on the other end of the pitch.
 
Manning found the Wildcats' final chance at goal in the 83^rd minute.  Her shot whistled over the crossbar.
 
Central Washington is back in action on Thursday (Sept. 27) for a home match against Western Oregon.  Kick-off is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.