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     • VIDEO: Tyler  Schultz

SEATTLE – Ryan Brand scored his second goal of the season, and Tyler Schultz drilled the decisive penalty kick, both during the first half Saturday, as Seattle Pacific got into the men's soccer win column by beating Metro State 2-1 at Interbay Stadium.

The Falcons (1-1-1) bounced back from Thursday's 3-1 loss to Notre Dame de Namur as they reached the midpoint of a season-opening five-game homestand.

Senior forward Brand (Portland, Ore.) scored his and SPU's first goal of the season with six minutes remaining in Thursday's loss. He started the scoring Saturday, tapping in a loose ball at the left post at the 9:30 mark.

Schultz (Scottsdale, Ariz.) started the scoring play with a shot from the right side that Metro goalkeeper Issa Bissau dove to his right to deflect. SPU's Drew Williams (Bend, Ore.) retrieved the ball on the left end line and sent it right back toward the goal. Brand was there waiting to redirect it through a traffic jam from a yard in front of the post.

Just over four minutes later, SPU's Caleb Nyone (Happy Valley, Ore.) was taken down by the Roadrunners Josh Buysse in the box. A penalty kick was immediately called, and Schultz blasted it into the back right corner with Bissau going the opposite way.



Penalty-kick duties are not assigned by SPU coaches prior to the game, enabling the players to sort it out when the situation arises. Schultz took it upon himself to take the 12-yard kick.

"I didn't really take them in the past too much, but I've been working on them in the summer," he explained.

Jeremy Brooks got Metro on the board shortly before halftime. A shot from the right side by teammate Jeremy Crawford was saved by Falcons goalkeeper Zach Johnson (Snohomish, Wash./Snohomish HS). But it came right out to Brooks, who put it to the far right corner at 43:13.

The Roadrunners (2-1-1) had a chance to tie it after being awarded a penalty kick early in the 60th minute. But Chris Yoder sent a low shot wide, traveling just left of the SPU goal.

"It definitely can be nerve-wracking, but you have to be confident to take it," Schultz said of penalty kicks. "I know Yoder, the kid that took their PK. He's a confident kid, he's a great player, but he kind of just hit the ball wrong I guess."

SPU outshot Metro, 20-16. Johnson made six saves, including two of the dramatic variety during the first half. He dove to his right to knock away a shot by TJ Thiebaut late in the 32nd minute, then came out to make a sliding save when Thiebaut came one-on-one into the box and fired a shot from 16 yards away on the left side in the 40th minute.

Pointing to the team's great pre-game mindset, Schultz noted that Saturday's win could provide ample momentum to propel the Falcons into Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.

"It was big. We definitely were looking for a win. You could tell in the locker room that we wanted it. We tied our first game and got a loss in our second game. We just really needed a win to get us on track."

The SPU men open their league schedule with a pair of home games. They host Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, Sept. 15 and Montana State Billings on Saturday, Sept. 17. Kick-off for both games is 7 p.m. at Interbay Stadium.


NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash.

Seattle Pacific 2, Metro State 1

Scoring – 1, SPU: Ryan Brand (Drew Williams), 9:30; 2, SPU: Tyler Schultz (PK), 13:50; 3, Metro: Jeremy Brooks (Scott Crawford), 43:13.

Shots – Metro 16, SPU 20.
Saves – Metro 5 (Issa Bissau), SPU 6 (Zach Johnson).
Corner kicks – Metro 6, SPU 4.
Fouls – Metro 7, SPU 19.
Offsides – Metro 2, SPU 2.
Cautions – SPU: Evan Robicheau, 88:27.
Ejections – None.
Attendance – 254.

Records –
Seattle Pacific 1-1-1
Metro State 2-1-1

Next game –
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific
Sept.15, Interbay Stadium, 7:00 p.m.