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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 --
Notre Dame de Namur at Seattle Pacific
4:30 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium (900), Seattle, Wash.

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 --
Nebraska Omaha at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium (900), Seattle, Wash.

LiveStats for Both Games: www.sidearmstats.com/spu/wsoc

The Seattle Pacific women's soccer team (1-1-0) seeks to rebound from an early setback with a pair of home games that conclude a season-opening, four-game homestand. The Falcons host Notre Dame de Namur (1-2-0) on Thursday, Sept. 8. Kick-off is 4:30 p.m. at Interbay Stadium where the men play at 7 p.m. SPU won its last four women's games against the Argonauts. Another soccer doubleheader is slated for Saturday, Sept. 10 with the women playing the 7 p.m. nightcap against Division I competitor Nebraska Omaha (2-1-1). The Falcons and Mavericks met in the 2005 NCAA Division II championship game, a 2-1 overtime decision for UNO. SPU starts GNAC play on the road next week.

Grab a Scorecard
You will want a copy of the roster to follow this season's squad. Five Falcons drew their initial start among the eight players that debuted for SPU last week. The new starters included Arizona State transfer Josie Graybeal and red-shirt freshman Annie Thomas along with true freshmen Alexa Diaz and Ali Martin. The biggest change came in goal as sophomore Natalie Harold took the position between the posts occupied the last four years by Maddie Dickinson, the school's all-time leader with 28 career shutouts.

Ticket Talk
Tickets for SPU soccer games can be purchased on game day at Interbay Stadium (3027 17th Ave. W., Seattle 98119). Ticket windows open one hour prior to kickoff. All seats are general admission and priced at $6 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens. SPU students and staff are admitted free. Groups or teams of 10 or more may qualify for reduced ticket rates by calling (206) 281-2085 in advance.



Recent Recap
SPU rallied from a one-goal deficit to defeat Chico State 2-1 in the season opener (Sept. 1). Andrea Chan converted a penalty kick and Kelsey Jenkins headed in the game winner in the 69th minute. The Falcons' record evened at 1-1 after they gave up two second-half goals to then No. 2-ranked UC San Diego (Sept. 3) in a 2-0 home loss.

Home Sweet Home
The SPU women have lost just twice in their last 54 homes games with a 48-2-4 mark since September 30, 2006. The 2-0 loss to UC San Diego on Sept. 3 marked the first time in 26 games that the Falcons surrendered more than one goal at Interbay Stadium. SPU posted a 7-1-1 home record last season, the lone loss a 1-0 setback against Western Washington on Sept. 30, 2010 that halted a 45-game home unbeaten streak. The Falcons compiled a 15-0 home record in 2007, 11-0-2 in 2008 and 11-0-1 in 2009.

Season Preview
Nine starters return from the SPU squad that compiled a 16-2-2 overall record in 2010, won its seventh GNAC title and earned its eighth straight postseason invitation. One of the two starters SPU needs to replace is goalkeeper Maddie Dickinson, the 2010 GNAC Defender of the Year who departed as the school's all-time leader with 28 shutouts. Seven returning players garnered first or second-team all-conference acclaim last year, including second-team All-Americans Megan Lindsay and Taylor Sawyer. Lindsay, a junior forward led the team with 11 goals in 2010. Sawyer is a junior defender who helped the defense limit opponents to 10 goals. SPU boasts three of the GNAC's top-four returning scorers, including Lindsay. Senior Brandi Hamre tallied six goals last year and tied for the league lead with nine assists. Kellie Zakrzewski scored eight goals en route to 2010 GNAC Freshman of the Year honors. The Falcons won the national championship in 2008. They advanced to the national semifinals in 2005 and 2007.

This Week's Opponents
Notre Dame de Namur (1-2-0) -- The Argonauts are members of the PacWest Conference. They opened the season with a 2-1 win over Cal State East Bay before falling 4-0 at Cal State Stanislaus. NDNU lost 1-0 at home to GNAC foe Western Oregon in its last outing. Sarah Biser accounted for both Argonauts goals. A trio of Notre Dame goalkeepers, led by Kelsee Berryman, compiled a 2.00 goals against average. After losing the first meeting 1-0 in overtime during their inaugural season of 2001, SPU won the last four encounters with NDNU by a combined 10-0 score. The Falcons were 3-0 victors in the most recent meeting, at a neutral site in 2008.

Nebraska Omaha (2-1-1) -- The NCAA Division I Mavericks bring a 2-1-1 record to their Northwest road trip that features games at Saint Martin's (Sept. 8) and Seattle Pacific (Sept. 10). After opening with a 2-0 loss to UW-Green Bay, Nebraska beat South Dakota (3-2) and Central Oklahoma (2-0) and tied Midwestern State (0-0). Katie Pickinpaugh's two goals lead the Mavericks while goalkeeper Katelyn Tschida compiled two shutouts and a 0.95 goals against average. The Falcons and UNO met just once before. The Mavericks were Division II members when they won a 2-1 overtime decision over SPU in the 2005 national championship game.

Coach Chuck  Sekyra
In his ninth season, Chuck Sekyra has guided Seattle Pacific to a remarkable 151-17-14 record, three Final Four appearances and the 2008 national championship. He directed six of those teams to GNAC championships, and all eight of his squads participated in the NCAA tournament. His Falcons advanced to the 2005 championship game. Sekyra was a defender on the SPU men's soccer teams that won back-to-back NCAA titles in 1985 and 1986. He served as an assistant men's coach at SPU in 1998 and 1999 under Cliff McCrath, then was an assistant women's coach at Washington for three years before being named head coach of the SPU women in 2003. Sekyra was named GNAC Coach of the Year five times (2003-05, '07, '09) and the Regional Coach of the Year in 2005 and 2007. He received the NSCAA National Coach of the Year award in 2007.

All in the Family
Like father, like daughter. Senior midfielder Kelsey Jenkins is making the type of impact you might expect from the offspring of a standout professional player. Jenkins netted the game-winner in the season-opening 2-1 win over Chico State. She scored six goals last season and three of them were game-winning tallies, including a brilliant 23-yard free kick in SPU's 2-0 NCAA second-round win over Montana State Billings. Jenkins is a native of Kent, Wash., who prepped at Kentwood High School. Her father, Tommy Jenkins, was a left winger with several English clubs between 1966-75, including a three-season stint from 1969-72 with Southampton of the First Division. Tommy then came to Seattle to play from 1976-79 with the Sounders of the NASL.

Playoff Pursuit
Seattle Pacific seeks to return to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the ninth straight year. The Falcons won the 2008 national championship. Last season they advanced to the West Region final before losing 1-0 to UC San Diego on a 73rd-minute goal. SPU advanced to the Final Four in three of the last six years.

Poll Patter
SPU dropped out of the national rankings after starting the season at No. 10 in the NSCAA coaches poll, right where they finished the 2010 campaign. The Falcons are listed fourth among team also receiving votes that are not ranked in the top 25.