BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Drew Farnsworth slotted home his third goal of the season in the 81st minute Thursday night, leading host Western Washington University to a 2-0 win over Montana State University Billings in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer match at Harrington Field.
 
Adding a final touch in the 90th minute, Anthony Dean finished a sliding shot into the net from five yards away to seal the win for WWU. The Vikings (6-2-3, 5-0-1 GNAC) pushed their unbeaten streak to seven matches, with six wins during that time span. Thursday's triumph kept WWU unbeaten in GNAC play, as the Vikings remained atop the league table with 16 points.
 
MSUB slipped to 5-7 overall on the season, and is now 3-3 in conference play with its second straight loss.
 
Farnsworth's goal broke the stalemate with less than 10 minutes remaining, as WWU proved to be the third consecutive team to expose a weakness for the 'Jackets on set pieces. After the original service into the box on a free kick by WWU was cleared towards the top, Farnsworth ran onto the ball and fired a strong, low shot into the left corner of the net.
 
The finish from 20 yards away marked the third consecutive goal the 'Jackets have surrendered that was generated off a set piece chance by their opponent.
 
Though the Vikings came away with the result, the 'Jackets pressured early and held the upper hand in the opening half. MSUB out-shot WWU 5-1 over the first 45 minutes, but WWU goalkeeper Tyler Visten made all four of his saves in the period to keep MSUB off the scoreboard.
 
Oliver Posarelli saved the day with 15 minutes to go before halftime, sliding back to the goal line to kick away a shot that was headed for the open net. It was WWU's only attempt of the first half, but the Vikings switched the tune to out-shoot MSUB 5-4 the rest of the game.
 
MSUB had a prime scoring chance minutes later, winning a free kick just 22 yards away at the center of the field. Visten denied an on-target shot by Guillaume Kremer, and smothered the loose ball before being fouled on another shot attempt by the 'Jackets.
 
Another set piece by Kremer set up one of the top scoring chances of the match midway through the second half, but a close-range shot by a wide-open Aidan Raj missed just wide of the net after the service into the box.
 
The 'Jackets pressed forward after falling behind, but could not generate a solid scoring chance over the final 10 minutes of play.
 
MSUB goalkeeper Tom Lohmann finished the game with a pair of saves for the 'Jackets, and Kremer led the team with three shots including two on target.
 
THE BUZZ: Kremer was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is now 9-18-1 all-time against WWU and is 5-12 in games played in Bellingham…Thursday was the third time this season the 'Jackets have been held without a goal…MSUB finished the match with 10 players after a red card with five minutes left.
 
COMING UP: MSUB returns to action on Saturday, with another GNAC match on tap at Northwest Nazarene University. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m., and live video and live statistics will be available online through MSUB's Stretch Internet portal here.