NAMPA, Idaho – Northwest Nazarene women's soccer will look to make program history this week as they vie for their first-ever conference championship, entering the GNAC postseason as the two-seed in their third GNAC Championships appearance.
 
The championships will take place Nov. 3-5 here at home at the NNU Soccer Field on the campus of Northwest Nazarene University. No. 1 Western Washington and No. 4 Simon Fraser will meet in the first semifinal on Thursday, Nov. 3 at 4 p.m., followed by No. 2 Northwest Nazarene facing No. 3 Seattle Pacific at 7 p.m.
 
The championship match will take place on Saturday, Nov. 5 at noon. The winner of the GNAC Championships will receive the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA Division II Championships. WWU, NNU, and SPU all factored in to the latest regional rankings posted by the NCAA, so any of those teams that do not win the GNAC title will rest their hopes on earning an at-large bid to the NCAA postseason. The Selection Show will air on NCAA.com on Monday, Nov. 7 at 5:00 p.m. MT.
 
Tickets to the 2022 GNAC Women's Soccer Championships are now available for advance purchase at GNACtickets.com. All tickets to the championship must be purchased through this ticket portal, whether purchased in advance or at the competition venue on game day. There will be no cash sales at the site. The championships will also be streamed online at GNAC.tv.
 
2022 GNAC Women's Soccer Championships Schedule (all times Mountain)

Thursday, Nov. 3 – Semifinals
No. 1 Western Washington vs. No. 4 Simon Fraser, 4:00 p.m.
No. 2 Northwest Nazarene vs. No. 3 Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
 
Saturday, Nov. 5 – Final
Winners of Each Semifinal, Noon
 
Nighthawks Notes
 
The Season

• Northwest Nazarene comes into the GNAC Championships as the No. 2 seed with a 9-2-3 conference record (11-3-4 overall).
• NNU's 11 wins are tied for second in program history for victories in a season with 2017 (11-7-0) and the shortened spring 2021 season (11-0-0). In 2001, NNU went 13-8 in the program's final year as a DII Independent before joining the GNAC as full-fledged member.
• After a rough opening weekend with a draw and a defeat, the Nighthawks went their next 13 games without a loss, going 10-0-3 over a span of nearly two months from Aug. 27 to Oct. 20.
• The 13-game unbeaten streak equals the longest in program history, as they went 11-0-0 during the shortened 2020 season (played in the spring of 2021) and then won their first two contests last year.
• NNU had a stretch of nine-straight contests without allowing a goal, going 6-0-3 and outscoring opponents 17-0 for nearly a month from Sept. 22 to Oct. 20.
• The Nighthawks went undefeated at home at NNU Soccer Field this season, going 8-0-1 with the only draw coming in scoreless fashion against Western Washington.
• NNU did not allow more than two goals to any opponent this season while scoring three or more six times.
• When NNU scores first, they are 10-0-1. When the opponent scores first, the Nighthawks are 1-3-0.
• When leading at half, NNU is unblemished at 9-0-0. When trailing at half, they are 0-2-1. In games where the Nighthawks go into halftime even with their opponent, they are 2-1-3.
• NNU has outshot opponents in 11 games, been outshot in five, and had the same amount of shots in two.
• The Nighthawks have been one of the top teams in the GNAC both offensively and defensively. They are tied for the GNAC lead in goals with 33 and rank second with 90 points. They also rank second in the conference with a 0.61 goals against average and 10 shutouts.

 
Awards/Rankings

• NNU received seven GNAC Player of the Week Awards this year, more than any other program in the conference as Western Washington was second with six. Madison Grande (Offensive) and Alexis Montoya (Defensive) each earned the award twice, while Ashley Parton (Offensive), Makayla Roggow (Defensive), and Magda Wronski (Defensive) round out the seven accolades.
• The Nighthawks earned seven All-Conference honors, led by the GNAC Player of the Year in Ashley Parton, the first player in program history to ever receive the conference's top award. Parton was joined by Madison Grande and Kailyn LaBrosse on the First Team, while Kate Bleffert and Alexis Montoya earned Second Team recognition and Alejandra Jaramillo and Magda Wronski were named Honorable Mention.
• NNU was ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Top-25 once this season, coming in at 25^th in the Week 7 rankings on Oct. 18. The Nighthawks also received votes in the prior two rankings as well as last week.
• NNU was fourth in the West Region in the latest NCAA regional rankings released on Oct. 26, with six teams from the West earning berths on Selection Monday. Another regional ranking will be released on Nov. 2 prior to the GNAC Championships, with the final selections announced on Monday, Nov. 7 at 4:30 p.m. MT.
• NNU was picked third in the GNAC Preseason Poll, outperforming that estimation by one spot with their second-place regular-season finish

 
Athlete Analysis

• NNU has had five players start all 18 games: forwards Madison Grande, Ashley Parton, and Sierra Sanchez, and defenders Makayla Roggow and Kate Bleffert.
• Six additional Nighthawks (11 total) have played in all 18 contests: Allison Wolf, Savanna Herz, Alejandra Jaramillo, Matisyn Ohlson, Carolyn Moravec, and Gracie Mares.
• NNU is led by GNAC-leading goal scorer Madison Grande, who has 10 on the season. She also leads the conference with her 20 points from those ten goals.
• Ashley Parton is tied for second in the conference with eight goals and 18 points.
• Magda Wronski has been exceptional at finding the feet or heads of potential goal scorers, tying for the GNAC lead with six assists on the season out of her defender position.
• Sierra Sanchez is also a threat offensively, ranking tied for 10^th in the GNAC with 10 points on three goals and four assists.
• True freshman Savanna Herz also has four assists on the year, tying with Sanchez and a few other players for fourth in the GNAC.
• Defensively, goalkeeper Alexis Montoya ranks first in the GNAC with an .848 save percentage and eight shutouts, while holding a 0.60 goals against average that is second in the conference by just one-hundredth of a point. 
• Magda Wronski, Makayla Roggow, Kate Bleffert, and Kailyn LaBrosse combine to help protect the goal on the back line for NNU's shut down defense that is 28^th in the nation in goals against average.
• Makayla Roggow has played the most minutes on the team this season at 1,579, all but 41 of the 18-game total of 1,620.
• Head coach Mary Ybarguen is in her 10^th season at the helm of Northwest Nazarene women's soccer, holding a 72-80-17 overall record and 40-64-12 mark in conference play entering the GNAC Championships.

 
Record Watch

• Senior forward Ashley Parton is currently second in program career history in goals (25), points (60), and games played (79). Katy McNutt '08 holds the records for both goals (39) and points (85), while Parton's teammate Magda Wronski is the leader in games played with 81 and counting.
• In addition to her program record for games played (81), senior defender Magda Wronski is tied with Lexi Fesenbek '16 for the top mark in NNU women's soccer history with 21 career assists.
• Senior goalkeeper Alexis Montoya will have multiple NNU career records to her name when the season concludes, including wins (35), goals against average (0.93), shutouts (25), and save percentage (.832). She is also currently tied for the school record for shutouts in a season with eight, equaling Daniele Ortiz in 2017.
• Junior forward Madison Grande is also making her way up the NNU career record books, currently tied for third with 22 goals and sixth with 45 points.

 
NNU's Record vs. Championships Qualifiers

• NNU is 1-23-2 since 2008 against Western Washington, with the win coming last season at home, 2-1, and one of the two draws happening earlier this season in Nampa, 0-0. This year, the Nighthawks are 0-1-1 against the Vikings, with the other meeting a 1-0 loss in Bellingham.
• NNU is 3-23-0 since 2008 against Seattle Pacific. One of those wins came earlier this season in Nampa by a 3-1 score, but NNU fell in Seattle this year by a final of 1-0.
• NNU is 8-10-3 all-time against Simon Fraser, including a 3-0-2 mark in the last five meetings. This year, NNU won 3-0 at home and drew 0-0 on the road in Burnaby.

 
NNU's GNAC Championships History

• The 2022 Championships marks just the third GNAC postseason appearance for Northwest Nazarene women's soccer, with the previous two coming in 2017 and 2021.
• The two-seed is the highest that NNU has achieved after earning the four in 2017 and the three in 2021.
• In 2017, NNU was knocked out by top-seeded (and now defunct) Concordia Portland 3-0 in the semifinals.
• In 2021, the Nighthawks fell in the semifinals again to two-seed Western Washington 3-1.
• As a result, NNU will be looking for its first-ever postseason victory when they square off with Seattle Pacific on Thursday.

 
Scouting Seattle Pacific
 
Last year's GNAC champion Seattle Pacific enters the GNAC Championships as the No. 3 seed after finishing the regular season 9-4-1 in GNAC play (11-5-2 overall). The Falcons started their conference schedule by winning four of their first five matches. The early results allowed SPU to pull away from its conference rivals and secure a place in the GNAC Championships in the penultimate week of the regular season.
 
Junior forward Sophie Beadle has been the leading scorer for SPU, racking up 14 points with four goals and six assists. Senior defender Marissa Bankey, junior forward Lauren Forster, and junior forward Jacqueline Blakeley all have four goals on the season as well.
 
Scouting Western Washington
 
Western Washington is the top seed after ending the regular season 11-1-2 in conference play (12-2-4 overall). They have been at the top of the standings for much of the season, riding a 13-match undefeated streak in GNAC play until the final week of the regular season. Junior forward Estera Levinte leads WWU offensively with six goals and four assists while senior goalkeeper Claire Henninger has recorded seven shutouts to rank second in the GNAC. 
 
The Vikings are one of just two teams in the conference with four players who have scored four or more goals. Along with Levinte's six, Morgan Manalili also has six while Tera Ziemer and Claire Potter each have four.
 
Scouting Simon Fraser
 
Simon Fraser punched its ticket to the GNAC Championships on the final day, earning a 0-0 draw against Western Oregon to finish off the regular season. The Red Leafs enter the championships as the No. 4 seed with a 4-5-5 conference record (5-6-7 overall). Simon Fraser was part of a key battle in the middle of the standings and was anchored by its goaltending. As a team, SFU ranks third in the conference with seven shutouts. The Red Leafs are led by junior forward/midfielder Giuliana Zaurrini with four goals and two assists.