LACEY, Wash. – The Saints continued to defend their home field, knocking off Western Washington 3-1, backed by goals from Brandon Madsen, Alexis Lopez, and Cayman John, to open up GNAC action.
 
Madsen got the Saints (3-4-0, 1-0-0) on the board in the eighth minute and the defense of SMU limited Western Washington (4-3-0, 0-1-0) to nothing in the first half. Lopez netted his first goal of the season to open the lead to 2-0, before the Vikings managed to score in the 79th minute. John put the final dagger in, scoring in the 84th minute to lead the Saints to the victory.
 
The Saints wasted no time applying pressure to the Vikings' defense, with Oscar Aguilar taking a shot on goal and Sebastian Navarro missing wide in the opening minutes. Saint Martin's first goal came when John worked past multiple defenders and cross the ball to Madsen on the far side of the box for Madsen's team leading fifth goal of the year. Western Washington mounted opportunities to tie the match, taking five corners and nine shots; however, the Saints' defense bent but did not break.
 
In the second half, the Vikings supplied a consistent attack, with four shots and two corners in the first 12 minutes. Despite all the offense, the Saints managed to turn the momentum on one play, when a ball from Navarro was played into the box, flicked from Madsen to Lopez, who punched in the goal and a 2-0 lead. Saint Martin's defense continued to hold until the 23 shot of the match for the Vikings in the 79th minute. Western Washington trimmed the lead to within one.
 
Instead of sitting back and hoping to run out the clock, the Saints went on the offensive. It payed off when Navarro found an open John 10 yards outside of the box, who drove home the final goal of the match, his first of the season, and a 3-1 victory over Western Washington.
 
The Saints finished the match with 12 shots, eight of which landed on goal, and were led by Lopez with five. All three of Madsen's attempts found their mark, with two being saved. Griffin Small posted another impressive sheet, making six saves on 27 shots faced, while only allowing the one goal.
 
Saint Martin's schedule does not get easier, with the Saints hosting #3 Simon Fraser at home on Saturday, September 22 at 3:00 p.m. Live stats and video of the match will be available for free on the Saints' Digital Network on smusaints.com