• Final Stats & Play-by-Play

SEATTLE – Sophomore Zach Johnson deflected credit after the game as impressively as he denied shots during the 110-minute standoff.

The Seattle Pacific goalkeeper made five saves, including back-to-back stops on the goal line just moments apart midway through the second half to help the Falcons gain a 0-0 double-overtime tie in the men's soccer opener for both schools on Friday night at Interbay Stadium.

Humboldt State (0-0-1) had the run of the play through the first half, outshooting Seattle Pacific (0-0-1) by an 8-3 margin. The Falcons turned that around in the second half with an 8-3 advantage.

Michael Schmidt got two of those second-half shots for the Lumberjacks directly in front of the right goalpost midway through the 68th minute. But the 6-foot-3 Johnson (Snohomish, Wash./Snohomish HS) stood tall when his Falcon teammates needed him most.

Johnson slapped away the first effort, denying a header an instant before it would have rolled into the net. Schmidt then collected the rebound and quickly fired another shot, but Johnson deflected that attempt with his chest.

“That was a good save, but you have to give it to the whole team,” Johnson said, sharing credit for his second career shutout. “It was a whole team effort and we all worked together to get this result. Unfortunately we just couldn't put it in the back of the net.”





SPU's best scoring chance came with just nine seconds left in regulation time when senior midfielder Andy Wolverton (Portland, Ore.) sent a short pass to junior forward Ryan Brand (Portland, Ore.). Brand dribbled the ball into the left side of the penalty area and went one-on-one against Humboldt goalkeeper Kyle Verle, who leaped and saved an eight-yard strike.

Verle finished the game with four saves for the Lumberjacks, who outshot SPU by a 15-12 margin. HSU had a 4-1 advantage in overtime shots, including a 3-0 edge during the second, 10-minute session.

Johnson, who played just four games with two starts and one shutout in 2009, has moved into the No. 1 goalkeeper role for the Falcons this season.

“Defensively I thought we were solid,” said third-year SPU coach Mark Collings. “Zach was fantastic in goal. He had to make one big, big save for us.”

The teams finished the game with 10 men apiece. SPU's Drew Williams was sent off on a straight red card midway through the 66th minute, then Humboldt's Ray Lind was shown his second yellow card of the night and the red that comes along with it late in the 73rd minute. Altogether, 37 fouls were called, with five yellow cards and the two reds.

This was the second straight year the teams played to a tie at Interbay, having drawn 1-1 in 2009.

SPU is now 30-7-6 all-time in opening games, and 31-7-5 in home openers.

The Falcons head out on a four-game road trip that begins on Monday at Chico State. They'll follow that with three games in Colorado: Sept. 10 at Metro State, Sept. 13 at Mesa State, and Sept. 15 at Regis.


NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Friday, September 3, 2010
Interbay Stadium/Seattle, Wash.

Seattle Pacific 0, Humboldt State 0 (2ot)

Scoring – None.

Shots – HSU 12, SPU 15.
Saves – HSU 4 (Kyle Verle), SPU 5 (Zach Johnson).
Corner kicks – HSU 5, SPU 4.
Fouls – HSU 18, SPU 19.
Offsides – HSU 4, SPU 2.
Cautions – HSU: Michael Schmidt, Ray Lind (2); SPU: Ryan Brand, Tyler Schultz.
Ejections – HSU: Lind; SPU: Drew Williams.
Attendance – 439.

Records
Seattle Pacific 0-0-1, Humboldt State 0-0-1

Next Game
Seattle Pacific at Chico State, Sept. 6, Chico, Calif., 7:00 p.m.