NWAC Soccer Semifinals Start Friday at Starfire Stadium

TUKWILA, Wash. – The NWAC Men's and Women's Soccer Championships continue this weekend, with the semifinals taking place on Friday and the finals on Sunday at Starfire Sports Stadium.

Women's soccer matchups include Clark vs. Columbia Basin at 11 a.m. and Lower Columbia vs. Spokane at 1:30 p.m. Men's soccer matchups will be Columbia Basin vs. Everett at 4 p.m. and Highline vs. Walla Walla at 6 p.m. for the nightcap.

Clark vs. Columbia Basin, 11 a.m.
The Penguins advance to their second straight NWAC final four thanks to shutout victories over Shoreline, 3-0, and Portland, 7-0 in the quarterfinals. With a 14-3-1 record, Clark has won eight in a row. Their opponent, the Hawks, are 15-1-1 overall and won the tough East Region. CBC took out Highline 2-1 in the quarterfinals to return to the semifinals for the second year in a row as well.

Lower Columbia vs. Spokane, 1:30 p.m.
The Red Devils are the No. 1-seed out of the West Region, finishing with a  14-2-6 overall record while going undefeated in region. Lower Columbia edged out North Idaho in PKs in the quarterfinals in a scoreless draw. Spokane enters the semifinals after upsetting undefeated, defending champions Peninsula in the quarterfinals. The Sasquatch scored two second half goals to send the match eventually to PKs, where they advanced by a 5-4 score. Spokane and Lower Columbia met up earlier in the year with the Sasquatch coming out on top 1-0 at the NWAC Friendlies.

Columbia Basin vs. Everett, 4 p.m.
The East Region champion Hawks enter the semifinals with a 12-3 overall record, winning their last three. Columbia Basin used its tough defense to stymie the high-powered Whatcom offense in the quarterfinals, winning 4-0. They'll now take on another North Region team in Everett. The Trojans are the only No. 3 seed in either bracket to reach the semifinals after winning back-to-back road games. Everett defeated Tacoma 3-0 before upsetting Lane 3-2 in the quarterfinals. They enter Friday with a 13-3-4 overall record.

Highline vs. Walla Walla, 6:30 p.m.
Friday's finale will feature the defending champion Thunderbirds, taking on the red hot Warriors. Highline continues to be a model of consistency as they reach the final four for the fifth time in the last six tournaments, finishing 11-5-2 overall on their way to the West Region title. The Thunderbirds dispatched Southwestern Oregon 4-0 in the quarterfinals. Walla Walla enters Friday with a 7-0-1 record in their last eight matches. The Warriors defeated Rogue 3-0 in the regional round before upsetting Peninsula 2-0 in the quarterfinals. This will be the teams' first matchup this season.

Winners of Friday's matches will advance to the finals, which will take place on Sunday. The women's final will be played at 1:30 p.m. with the men's final at 4 p.m. The women's all-star game will be earlier Sunday morning at 9 a.m., with the men's all-star game at 11:30 a.m. A live broadcast of all tournament matches and the all-star games can be found at nwacsportsnetwork.com.

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