Wednesday, October 8
Moraga, CA
4:00 PM
Saint Mary's College of California
vs
Washington State
#18 Natalie Mejia: 9 GP/1 GS, 275 MP, played career high 63 MP vs. San Francisco
Photo by: Saint Mary's Athletics / Tod Fierner
WSOC | Gaels Surge Into Week Three with 8-Match Unbeaten Streak, Matchups Against Washington State and Seattle U
10/7/2025 11:31:00 AM | Women's Soccer
MORAGA, Calif. — After a dominant road victory over LMU, Saint Mary's Women's Soccer is entering week three of conference play where they will face both Washington State and Seattle U. In their recent match with the Lions, the Gaels applied relentless pressure throughout all 90 minutes, outshooting the Lions 26-7. The effort resulted in a 1-0 victory and their seventh shutout of the season.
The win also extended the Gaels unbeaten streak to eight games, their longest since the 2001 season. Ashlyn Vaughn was named the department's Student-Athlete of the Week with her third goal of the season while goalkeeper Kate Plachy earned her fourth WCC Defensive Player of the Week award with her career best seventh shutout of the season. Saint Mary's will enter the week in second place in the WCC standings with a 2-0-1 record.
GAME COVERAGE AND INFORMATION
WSOC | Saint Mary's vs. Washington State | Saint Mary's Stadium
Moraga, Calif. | October 8th | 4:00 PM
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
WSOC | Saint Mary's at Seattle U | Championship Field
Seattle, Wash. | October 11th | 6:00 PM
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
GAELS OUTLOOK
Second Consecutive Week Two Gaels Earn Athlete of the Week…
After her incredible game-winning goal in the game against the Lions, Vaughn received the department's Shamrock Office Solutions Student-Athlete of the Week award for the first time in her SMC career. The strike tied her for second most goals on the team with three. Her incredible goal also earned her a feature in the number nine spot on SportsCenter's Top-10 Saturday night (click HERE).
For the second week in a row, Gaels goalkeeper Kate Plachy was named the WCC Defensive Player of the Week, making it her fourth time receiving the honor this season. The sophomore goalkeeper ranks third in the conference for saves, racking up a total of 42 on the season so far, and ranks eighth in all of Division I with seven shutouts this season. It's been a total team effort this season but Plachy has been putting up career numbers in goal to help lead one of the best backline's in the WCC.
Unbeaten Streak Pushed to Eight Games…
For the first time in 24 years, the Saint Mary's women's soccer team has gone unbeaten in eight consecutive games. The streak continued last weekend with a 1-0 road win over LMU for their seventh of the season and second in conference play.
Over their eight-game unbeaten streak dating back to August 28th, the Gaels have outscored their opponents 15-1 and have gone a combined 7-0-1 with key wins over Boston U, Hawaii, #16 Georgetown and WCC wins over Gonzaga and LMU. Other notable current unbeaten streaks across Division I include nine games from West Virginia, ten games from Stephen F. Austin and eleven games from Bowling Green.
Series History…
In their last four meetings, Saint Mary's has gone 1-3 against Washington State. Their lone win came in the 2023 season when SMC stunned the number 15 ranked Cougars with a 1-0 shutout on the road. Current senior forward Briana Salvetti provided the difference maker in that match, scoring in just the third minute of play.
Saint Mary's has only faced Seattle U twice over the past eleven years, with the Redhawks taking both matches. The most recent meeting came in 2014, which resulted in a 0-2 loss in Moraga, while the 2012 road matchup ended in a 1-5 loss for the Gaels.
Saint Mary's added another match to the win column after their road defeat over LMU, marking their third WCC match of the season. After continuous chances on goal for the Gaels, the breakthrough finally came in the 58th minute when freshman forward Ashlyn Vaughn fired a cross-shot into the top left corner of the net for her third goal of the season.
ABOUT THE COUGARS
Washington State enters the week with an overall record of 3-4-4 and 1-1-1 in conference play. Leading the attack for the Cougars is Martinez, California native Jordyn Young, who has tallied three goals on the season. Close behind is Sacramento native Audrey Shackelford who has netted two. In their most recent outing, Washington State earned a 1-1 draw on the road against San Diego, with Young scoring their lone goal for the Cougars.
Head coach Todd Shulenberger is in his eleventh season with the Cougars. Over his time with Washington State, Shulenberger has led the team to ten NCAA tournaments and to the program's first College Cup appearance, ending their season in the national semifinals back in the 2019 season. The Cougars were picked to finish fifth in this year's preseason poll after finishing fourth last season with a conference record of 5-2-3.
ABOUT THE REDHAWKS
Seattle U has kicked off their first season as members of the WCC with a conference record of 0-2-1, falling to both Washington State and Pepperdine and recording a wild 3-3 draw against Santa Clara. Eyes will be on Redhawks' senior midfielder Caroline Penner, who leads the team in goals with seven on the season and netted the final goal for the Redhawks in the match against the Broncos. Seattle is 4-2-5 overall but find themselves winless through three weeks of WCC play as they will look for their first victory with a pair of home matches against Pacific and Saint Mary's this week.
Seattle U is under the leadership of long time head coach and alumni Julie Woodward, who is in her 29th season with the Redhawks. Woodward has led the program to eight NCAA tournament appearances and five WAC Tournament Championships, the most of any current WAC member. She will lead the program into their new chapter as first-year members of the West Coast Conference.
Saint Mary's will host Washington State on Wednesday, October 8th with kickoff slated for 4:00 PM. The Gaels will then travel north to face Seattle U on Saturday, October 11th at 6:00 PM. Both matches will be streamed live on ESPN+ and tickets can be purchased online at smcgaels.com/tickets.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
The win also extended the Gaels unbeaten streak to eight games, their longest since the 2001 season. Ashlyn Vaughn was named the department's Student-Athlete of the Week with her third goal of the season while goalkeeper Kate Plachy earned her fourth WCC Defensive Player of the Week award with her career best seventh shutout of the season. Saint Mary's will enter the week in second place in the WCC standings with a 2-0-1 record.
GAME COVERAGE AND INFORMATION
WSOC | Saint Mary's vs. Washington State | Saint Mary's Stadium
Moraga, Calif. | October 8th | 4:00 PM
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
WSOC | Saint Mary's at Seattle U | Championship Field
Seattle, Wash. | October 11th | 6:00 PM
Live Stats | ESPN+ | Tickets
GAELS OUTLOOK
Second Consecutive Week Two Gaels Earn Athlete of the Week…
After her incredible game-winning goal in the game against the Lions, Vaughn received the department's Shamrock Office Solutions Student-Athlete of the Week award for the first time in her SMC career. The strike tied her for second most goals on the team with three. Her incredible goal also earned her a feature in the number nine spot on SportsCenter's Top-10 Saturday night (click HERE).
For the second week in a row, Gaels goalkeeper Kate Plachy was named the WCC Defensive Player of the Week, making it her fourth time receiving the honor this season. The sophomore goalkeeper ranks third in the conference for saves, racking up a total of 42 on the season so far, and ranks eighth in all of Division I with seven shutouts this season. It's been a total team effort this season but Plachy has been putting up career numbers in goal to help lead one of the best backline's in the WCC.
Unbeaten Streak Pushed to Eight Games…
For the first time in 24 years, the Saint Mary's women's soccer team has gone unbeaten in eight consecutive games. The streak continued last weekend with a 1-0 road win over LMU for their seventh of the season and second in conference play.
Over their eight-game unbeaten streak dating back to August 28th, the Gaels have outscored their opponents 15-1 and have gone a combined 7-0-1 with key wins over Boston U, Hawaii, #16 Georgetown and WCC wins over Gonzaga and LMU. Other notable current unbeaten streaks across Division I include nine games from West Virginia, ten games from Stephen F. Austin and eleven games from Bowling Green.
Series History…
In their last four meetings, Saint Mary's has gone 1-3 against Washington State. Their lone win came in the 2023 season when SMC stunned the number 15 ranked Cougars with a 1-0 shutout on the road. Current senior forward Briana Salvetti provided the difference maker in that match, scoring in just the third minute of play.
Saint Mary's has only faced Seattle U twice over the past eleven years, with the Redhawks taking both matches. The most recent meeting came in 2014, which resulted in a 0-2 loss in Moraga, while the 2012 road matchup ended in a 1-5 loss for the Gaels.
Saint Mary's added another match to the win column after their road defeat over LMU, marking their third WCC match of the season. After continuous chances on goal for the Gaels, the breakthrough finally came in the 58th minute when freshman forward Ashlyn Vaughn fired a cross-shot into the top left corner of the net for her third goal of the season.
ABOUT THE COUGARS
Washington State enters the week with an overall record of 3-4-4 and 1-1-1 in conference play. Leading the attack for the Cougars is Martinez, California native Jordyn Young, who has tallied three goals on the season. Close behind is Sacramento native Audrey Shackelford who has netted two. In their most recent outing, Washington State earned a 1-1 draw on the road against San Diego, with Young scoring their lone goal for the Cougars.
Head coach Todd Shulenberger is in his eleventh season with the Cougars. Over his time with Washington State, Shulenberger has led the team to ten NCAA tournaments and to the program's first College Cup appearance, ending their season in the national semifinals back in the 2019 season. The Cougars were picked to finish fifth in this year's preseason poll after finishing fourth last season with a conference record of 5-2-3.
ABOUT THE REDHAWKS
Seattle U has kicked off their first season as members of the WCC with a conference record of 0-2-1, falling to both Washington State and Pepperdine and recording a wild 3-3 draw against Santa Clara. Eyes will be on Redhawks' senior midfielder Caroline Penner, who leads the team in goals with seven on the season and netted the final goal for the Redhawks in the match against the Broncos. Seattle is 4-2-5 overall but find themselves winless through three weeks of WCC play as they will look for their first victory with a pair of home matches against Pacific and Saint Mary's this week.
Seattle U is under the leadership of long time head coach and alumni Julie Woodward, who is in her 29th season with the Redhawks. Woodward has led the program to eight NCAA tournament appearances and five WAC Tournament Championships, the most of any current WAC member. She will lead the program into their new chapter as first-year members of the West Coast Conference.
Saint Mary's will host Washington State on Wednesday, October 8th with kickoff slated for 4:00 PM. The Gaels will then travel north to face Seattle U on Saturday, October 11th at 6:00 PM. Both matches will be streamed live on ESPN+ and tickets can be purchased online at smcgaels.com/tickets.
Be sure to follow your Gaels on Facebook, Instagram, and X to get all the latest Saint Mary's athletics updates and information.
#GaelsRise
Players Mentioned
WSOC | Ashlyn Vaughn Goal vs. LMU, Featured on SportsCenter's Top-10
Tuesday, October 07
WSOC | Game Winner vs. Gonzaga in WCC Opener
Thursday, September 25
WSOC | Postgame Interview vs. Hawaii 2025
Monday, September 08
WSOC | Postgame Interview vs. CSUN
Friday, August 15
