BILLINGS, Mont. – A strong start made the difference on Saturday afternoon at Yellowjacket Field, as No. 7 Western Washington University scored all three of its goals in the first half on the way to a 3-0 Great Northwest Athletic Conference victory over the Montana State University Billings women's soccer team.
 
Two goals by Estera Levinte sandwiched one by Kascia Muscutt, as WWU out-shot MSUB 19-5 in the match while placing 11 attempts on frame. "It was a tough first half from us and we built ourselves a deep hole against a very good team," said MSUB head coach Stephen Cavallo. "I thought overall that we had a decent match, and certainly a much better second half. In the first half we made some mistakes in the back and a team of Western Washington's caliber is going to punish you when that happens."
 
MSUB shaped up defensively and created some chances in a more balanced second half, as the Vikings' shot advantage fell to just 7-5 over the second 45 minutes. "I thought the team showed a lot more life in the second half, and I appreciate the character a lot of the girls showed," said Cavallo. "It has been a challenging season, but we have proven that we have good moments in games. With four matches to go, my only message to the team is to keep believing and keep improving."
 
Western Washington won its sixth straight game, improving to 10-1-3 on the season and maintaining its spot at the top of the GNAC table with a league record of 9-0-1. MSUB meanwhile slipped to 1-10-4 overall and is now 1-7-2 in conference play with the defeat.
 
Clare Keenan, the GNAC leader in saves with 88 on the season, made eight more stops in another headline performance. She climbed to No. 6 in MSUB single-season history with her performance on Saturday.
 
The Vikings took advantage of one of their first scoring opportunities, as Claire Potter got loose in the box and sent her low shot attempt off a sliding Keenan. Levinte was there to tuck the resulting loose ball into the back of the net to give her team the 1-0 lead.
 
Western's next finish came in the 30th minute, as the visitors took advantage of one of their eight corner kicks they won throughout the match. Emily Rice curled a well-struck ball to the back post, where Muscutt got through a pair of defenders to redirect the ball into the back of the net.
 
Less than five minutes later, WWU put the game out of reach on a top-shelf finish from Levinte. The forward intercepted an errant pass from the MSUB back line near the top of the box on the left side, and blasted an unstoppable, left-footed strike into the upper-right corner of the net.
 
After being held without a shot in the opening half, MSUB came out of the break with some energy and tested the Viking back line. Jackie Sharpe placed one of her two shot attempts on frame, which required a diving save from Abigail Trengove. In her first match since Sept. 2, Vivien Guese supplied the 'Jackets with a good spell of 23 minutes coming off the bench. She had the team's other attempt on frame – a right-footed strike from the top of the box that was secured by Trengove.
 
The Vikings knocked on the door of scoring a fourth goal, but the 'Jackets withstood the push to keep the score at 3-0. Perhaps WWU's closest chance at scoring again came on a free kick in the 68th minute, when a 20-yard strike by Morgan Manalili grazed the outside of the side netting.
 
Levinte led all players with eight shots including six on target, while Manalili had four shots and Potter placed two of her three attempts on target.
 
THE BUZZ: Guese was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…WWU swept the season series, after beating MSUB 2-0 in Bellingham, Wash., on Sept. 29…MSUB is now 3-27-1 all-time against WWU and is 2-11 in home matches against the Vikings.
 
NEXT WEEK: The Yellowjackets hit the road, for matches at Western Oregon next Thursday and at Saint Martin's next Saturday. Live coverage for next week's games will be available online here.