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     • NCAA Tournament Bracket
     • VIDEO: Richie  Evoy

NCAA DIVISION II MEN'S SOCCER TOURNAMENT -- WEST REGIONAL
1st & 2nd Rounds at Interbay Stadium; Seattle, Wash.

• LiveStats for All West Region Games: 
http://www.sidearmstats.com/spu/msoc/

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10 --
Game 1: Chico State vs. (#17) Cal State L.A.,  4:00 p.m. PST
Game 2: Cal State Dominguez Hills vs. (#13) Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12 --
West Region Championship: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner, 7:00 p.m.

They're back! After a four-year absence, the 13th-ranked Seattle Pacific men (13-3-2) return to the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament where they produced so many postseason highlights during the previous four decades. The five-time national champion Falcons' 31st foray into the playoffs begins at home as they host the West Regional, beginning with a Thursday, Nov. 10 doubleheader. SPU meets Cal State Dominguez Hills (12-5-2) in the 7 p.m. nightcap at Interbay Stadium where Chico State (13-4-3) and No. 17 Cal State L.A. (14-1-5) play in the other first-round contest. The winners will meet in the West Region title game on Saturday, Nov. 12 in a 7 p.m. clash at Interbay for an NCAA quarterfinals berth.

Ticket Talk
Tickets for NCAA Tournament games can be purchased at the gate on game day and are $7 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens. Interbay Stadium is located just off the Dravus Street exit of 15th Avenue, at 3027 17th Ave. W., Seattle 98119. For more information please contact the SPU Ticket Office at: (206) 281-2085.

SPU Tournament History
This marks the 31st playoff berth for SPU, which has a 37-22-8 record in all-time postseason games. The Falcons have five national championships to their credit (1978, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1993). They reached the championship game on 10 occasions and were national semifinalists 14 times. SPU's last NCAA appearance resulted in a 2-1 loss to Cal State L.A. in the first round of the 2006 Tournament.

Tournament Format
The NCAA Division II Tournament is a single-elimination playoff starting with a 32-team field divided into four super regions. The West Region winner meets the Midwest Region champion in the quarterfinals. The semifinals and title game are scheduled for Dec. 1 and 3 at Ashton Brosnaham Soccer Complex in Pensacola, Fla. Chico State advanced to the Elite Eight as the West Region champion last year and Northern Kentucky won the 2010 championship.



Falcons Fast Facts
• The Falcons' 13 wins are their most single-season victories since the 2005 squad compiled 15.

• SPU has a 13-0 record this season when scoring the game's first goal and is 12-0 when leading at halftime.

Quoting Coach Mark  Collings
“We're so excited to get back into the tournament. I'm especially happy for our seniors who haven't been to the playoffs in their time here until now. The players have worked extremely hard to get to this point and getting to play at home is a great reward for that effort. We'll have a bunch of support there from our alums and fans and families. It's a great advantage for us to play at home. These other three programs have been there recently. We're probably the least experienced of the four going into the tournament, but hopefully the home field advantage will help alleviate some of that.”

Scouting Seattle Pacific (13-3-2, 7-2-1 GNAC)
The 13th-ranked Falcons lost just once in their last nine outings. They outscore opponents 37-14 behind the 15 goals of GNAC Player of the Year Tyler Schultz. The senior midfielder netted the game-winning goal in eight of SPU's 13 victories. Senior Dew Williams is the top playmaker with eight assists. GNAC Defender of the Year Jon Pearman and first-team all-league goalkeeper Zach Johnson anchor a defense that compiled 11 shutouts and a 0.75 goals against average.

The Opponents
Cal State Dominguez Hills (12-5-2, 10-4-2 CCAA) -- The Toros were shutout in their last two games (2-0 at Cal State Monterey Bay and 3-0 vs. Chico State) immediately following a stretch when they lost just once in 11 games. Jordan Rover leads a balanced attack with seven goals. Goalkeeper Markus Dickerson has four shutouts and a 1.21 goals against average. Dominquez won the 2008 NCAA Division II national championship. The Toros won the last eight meetings to take a 10-4-1 series lead over SPU. Dominguez won the last encounter 2-0 on Oct. 23, 2009 in California. SPU last beat the Toros on Oct 5, 2002.

Cal State L.A. (14-1-5, 10-1-5 CCAA) -- The 17th-ranked Golden Eagles are undefeated in their last 12 outings with nine wins and three ties during that span. They won the CCAA Tournament and bring a six-game winning streak into the postseason. CSULA outscored opponents by an impressive 50-18 figure, led by twin 10-goal scorers Jason Swope and Rosario Bras. Goalkeepers Waleed Cassis and Jose Martinez combined for six shutouts and a 0.85 goals against average. SPU owns a 6-4-1 series advantage despite going 0-3-1 during the last four meetings. The Eagles were 2-1 victors in the most recent encounter, on Oct. 21, 2009 in Los Angeles.

Chico State (13-4-3 11-3-2 CCAA) -- The defending NCAA West Region champion Wildcats had a seven-game winning streak snapped by a 2-0 loss to Cal State L.A. in the championship game of the CCAA Tournament. They are outscoring foes 32-15 led by the nine goals of Ferid Celosmanovic. Goalkeepers Sam Evans and James Stroud teamed up to compile 11 shutouts and a 0.73 goals against average. If both teams advance to the second round, a Saturday clash between Chico and SPU would be the second meeting of the year. They started the season on Sept. 1 and played to a scoreless draw for 110 minutes.  In the most recent encounter prior to this season, the Wildcats halted a five-game losing skid against SPU with a 1-0 victory on Sept. 6, 2010 in Chico. Celesmanovic notched the game winner in the 61st minute. The Falcons own an 18-16-2 series edge.

Terrific Tyler
Seattle Pacific senior Tyler Schultz was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year on Monday (Nov. 8). He earned first-team All-GNAC recognition for the third straight season. Schultz finished the regular-season as the league leader in total points (33) and points per game (1.83). He ranked second among GNAC players with 15 goals and his eight game-winners led the conference. His 15 goals are the most by an SPU player in a season since Dana Garner scored 16 in 2000. Schultz ranks 10th among all-time SPU scorers with 37 career goals. The two-time GNAC Athlete of the Week (Sept. 26 & Oct. 24) posted his first career hat trick in a 5-2 win at Mary (Sept. 21). Schultz topped all SPU goal-scorers in each of the previous two seasons with 10 in 2010 and eight in 2009.

Falcons vs. the Field
Seattle Pacific played two games this season against opponents from the 32-team NCAA Tournament field, posting a 1-0-1 record in two home games. The Falcons tied Chico State 0-0 (Sept. 1) and defeated Metro State 2-1 (Sept. 10).

Poll Position
The Seattle Pacific men climbed 10 spots to No. 13 in this week's (Nov. 8) NCAA Division II coaches poll. They returned to the national rankings Oct. 11 for the first time in two years, receiving a No. 17 listing. Two of SPU's three losses (4-3 and 2-1) came against No. 1 Simon Fraser, which went undefeated and won the GNAC title, but is ineligible for the playoffs.

Coach Collings
Fourth-year coach Mark Collings is the third head coach in the 44-year history of Seattle Pacific men's soccer. He has a 40-24-10 record with the Falcons and directed them to their first playoff berth since 2006. Collings was named the 2010 GNAC Co-Coach of the Year after directing SPU to a 10-6-2 overall record and a second-place league mark of 7-2-1. The Falcons were 11-5-3 in 2009, finishing third with a 4-3-1 league ledger. In his first season, SPU was 6-10-3 with a second-place GNAC finish (4-4) in 2008. Collings replaced Cliff McCrath, who compiled a 512-190-87 mark in 38 seasons (1970-2007). Arnie Aizstrauts was 1-14-1 from 1968-69. The co-captain of SPU's 1998 Final Four team, Collings was a five-year assistant coach. He avoided a first-year Falcon curse as his predecessors were winless in their inaugural seasons.

Conference Honors
Seattle Pacific senior midfielder Tyler Schultz received the Player of the Year award, Jon Pearman was named the Defender of the Year and both were first-team selections on the 2011 Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer all-star squad. Four Falcons were first-team honorees, including junior goalkeeper Zach Johnson. The midfield duo of Schulz and Caleb Nyone were both repeat first-team All-GNAC selections. Schultz earned first-team All-GNAC recognition for the third straight season. He finished the regular-season as the league leader in total points (33) and points per game (1.83). Schultz ranked second among GNAC players with 15 goals and his eight game-winners led the conference. Schultz shared the Player of the Year award with Carlo Basso of Simon Fraser who compiled 16 goals for the GNAC champions. Pearman led a Falcons defense that allowed just 14 goals in 18 games and produced a streak of six straight shutouts.  He was helped by Nyone, a defensive midfielder. Johnson's 11 shutouts were five more than any other goalkeeper in the GNAC. He recorded an outstanding 0.76 goals against average. Senior midfielder Drew Williams, who ranked second in the league with eight assists, was a second-team all-conference selection. A trio of Falcons received honorable mention accolades: sophomore midfielder Kodiac Gamble, junior defender Brandon Kuenzi and junior midfielder Christopher Morris.