Western Washington shut out Azusa Pacific 1-0 in Monday night’s matchup, marking the Cougars’ first 0-3 start since 1992.
Catherine Miles delivered the Vikings’ early second-half goal with a cross from Anna DeWeirdt in the 56th minute. This was one of just four shots on frame from Western Washington.
The No. 3-ranked Vikings are one of the three teams in the Cougars’ opening campaign to have competed in the 2013 Division II Women’s Soccer Championships, along with Sonoma State and Cal State Stanislaus.
“Obviously three games in five days is a challenge. Part of my thought process was, ‘Let’s throw some of the best at us and see what happens,'” said head coach Jason Surrell. “I feel like if those are three of the better teams in Division II, we’re certainly right there and feel pretty good competing against them.”
The Cougars outshot the Vikings 16-8, placing seven shots on frame. These continued aggressive efforts in the offensive third, however, have remained unsuccessful for the Cougars, who have yet to find the back of the net.
“Tonight, statistically we were better and we’ve continued to progress that way,” Surrell said. “I think the positive moving forward is we’ve certainly made good strides in the offensive third, where we’ve struggled to create much, so we know it’ll come; it’s just a matter of time.”
The Cougars will continue their non-conference schedule at UC San Diego this Thursday before hosting Cal State Dominguez Hills and Cal State LA next week.