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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18 --
Seattle Pacific at Saint Martin's
2:00 p.m. PDT, SMU Soccer Field, Lacey, Wash.
LiveStats:  http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/spu.portal#
 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20 --
Western Oregon at Seattle Pacific
1:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium (900), Seattle, Wash.
LiveStats:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/wsoc
 

Winners of five straight games, the Seattle Pacific women's soccer team (10-2-2, 7-1-2 GNAC) plays three of its final four regular-season games on the road, beginning on Thursday, Oct. 18 at Saint Martin's (6-8-0, 4-6-0). Kick-off is 2 p.m. at SMU Soccer Field in Lacey, Wash. SPU won all 11 previous encounters against the Saints. On Saturday, Oct. 20 the Falcons play their final home game, a 1 p.m. contest at Interbay Stadium against Western Oregon (7-6-1, 5-4-1). Those two teams battled to a 1-1 double-overtime tie on Sept. 27 at WOU. The three-time defending Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion Falcons have a 7-1-2 league record and trail first-place Western Washington by four points.
 
Throw-Ins
The SPU women are unbeaten in the last nine games with a 7-0-2 record in that span ... In two games last week, the Falcons tallied seven goals and they were scored by seven different players ... Sophomore goalkeeper Alexa Hughes has a 3-0 record in three starts with two shutouts and a 0.31 goals against average ... Nineteen players have started this season for SPU and 13 of them were underclassmen, including eight sophomores and five freshmen .... Ali Martin has a point (goal or assist) in each of the last five games.
 
Magnificent Megan
Senior forward Megan Lindsay netted a goal in three of the last four games. She has 35 career goals to rank No. 3 among all-time SPU scorers. Sarah Martinez (2004-07) is the Falcons' career leader with 49 goals and Shannon Lovejoy (2002-05) is second with 42. Lindsay's six goals this season tie her for the team scoring lead with Ali Martin. An honorable mention All-American in 2011, Lindsay led all GNAC players with 12 goals last season. She has a point (goal or assist) in each of the last five games.
 


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.
 
Senior Salute
Prior to Saturday's game, a brief ceremony will be conducted to honor SPU's three seniors. Brittany Langdon, Megan Lindsay and Kendall Thoreson will make their final regular-season home appearances at Interbay Stadium. That trio helped the Falcons compile a 59-10-6 record, capture three GNAC championships and earn three NCAA Tournament berths during their four-year collegiate careers.
 
Player of the Week
Freshman Emma Holm, who helped SPU surrender only one goal in two impressive home victories, received the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week award on Monday. Holm anchored the defense that held Northwest Nazarene to a single score in SPU's 4-1 win on Oct. 11. The Crusaders were limited to just seven shots. On Oct. 13, Holm fueled the Falcons to their fourth shutout with a 3-0 triumph over Montana State Billings. Holm is one of only three players to start every SPU game, the only freshman.
 
Playoff Pursuit
The SPU women seek to return to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the 10th straight year. The Falcons won the 2008 national championship. Last season they advanced to the West Region semifinal before losing 2-1 at Cal State L.A. on an 80th-minute goal. SPU advanced to the Final Four on three occasions (2005, 2007, 2008).
 
This Week's Opponents
Saint Martin's (6-8-0, 4-6-0 GNAC) -- The Saints defeated Simon Fraser 2-0 in their last outing to stop a four-game losing streak. Abby McFaul leads the SMU attack with four goals while Caley Wiseman is the top playmaker with five assists. Ashley Engel and Gina Cardenas share the workload in goal, combining for three shutouts and a 1.53 goals against average. SPU won all 11 previous meetings with the Saints, including a 2-1 double-overtime decision on Sept. 29 that Shayla Page ended with 10 seconds left on the clock on a header off a corner kick from Megan Lindsay.
 
Western Oregon (7-6-1, 5-4-1 GNAC) -- Winners in four of their last five games, the Wolves are currently in fourth place and in position to grab the final spot in the inaugural GNAC Tournament. Lindsay Bauman and Marina Austin each have four goals to tie for team-high honors. Goalkeepers Hilary Lutz and Kelsey Lindsey combined for six shutouts and a 1.10 goals against average.  SPU, which owns a 19-2-1 series lead, won 18 consecutive encounters before tying the Wolves 1-1 on Sept. 27 in Monmouth, Ore.
 
Home Sweet Home
The SPU women lost just three times in their last 71 homes games with a 63-3-5 mark since Sept. 30, 2006. They had a 45-game home unbeaten streak snapped on Sept. 30, 2010 with a 1-0 loss to Western Washington. The Falcons have a 7-0-1 home record. They posted a 9-2-0 home mark last season and were 7-1-1 in 2010, 11-0-1 in 2009, 11-0-2 in 2008 and 15-0 in 2007.
 
Coach Chuck  Sekyra
In his 10th season, Chuck Sekyra has guided Seattle Pacific to a remarkable 177-21-16 record, three Final Four appearances and the 2008 national championship. He directed seven of those teams to GNAC championships, and all nine 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 six times (2003-05, 2007, 2009, 2011) and the Regional Coach of the Year in 2005 and 2007. He received the NSCAA National Coach of the Year award in 2007.
 
GNAC Title Chase
With eight championships in the 11-year history of the program, it's no surprise that Seattle Pacific is the favorite once again to win the Great Northwest Athletic Conference title. This time, it's unanimous. The Falcons received all eight first-place votes in the conference preseason coaches poll. The three-time defending champion Falcons seek to match the record of the SPU squads from 2002-2005 that collected four straight GNAC crowns. They return six starters from last season's team that captured the GNAC championship with a 13-1 record. SPU won eight of the 11 titles since the GNAC began sponsoring women's soccer in 2001.
 
Next Week
The Seattle Pacific women close out the regular season on the road. They travel to Burnaby, B.C. for an Oct. 25 game at Simon Fraser before closing out the schedule at first-place Western Washington on Oct. 27 in Bellingham, Wash. Both games start at 7 p.m.