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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3 –
(#1) Simon Fraser at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium (900), Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5 –
Western Washington at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium (900), Seattle, Wash.
 
• LiveStats for Both Games:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/msoc
 
An early battle for first place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer standings takes place on Thursday, Oct. 3 when top-ranked Simon Fraser visits Seattle Pacific.  The undefeated Clan (8-0-0, 4-0-0 GNAC) and SPU (5-1-1, 3-0-1) clash at 7 p.m. on the Interbay Stadium pitch. Three-time defending GNAC champion Simon Fraser won the last four meetings with the Falcons. SPU's homestand continues on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. with a game against Western Washington (5-2-1, 3-0-1). The Vikings and SPU are tied for second place with 10 points apiece, trailing Simon Fraser by two points. The Falcons finish their stretch of five straight home games on Oct. 12 at 4:30 p.m. against Saint Martin's. Vying for their 33rd NCAA Division II Tournament berth, SPU participated in the playoffs in each of the last two seasons.
 
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.
 


Dynamic Defense
SPU has allowed just two goals from the run of play in the last 617 minutes. They gave up two penalty kicks during that span. Red-shirt freshman goalkeeper Cody Lang played all 650 minutes between the posts, compiling 22 saves, three shutouts and a 0.69 goals against average. The Falcons defense limited their five opponents to 71 shots and just 27 attempts directly on goal.
 
Throw-Ins
All three of freshman Stephen MacDonald's goals were game-winners. Eight other Falcons have scored, but none more than one goal ... SPU's 0.69 goals against average leads the GNAC and ranks No. 21 nationally.
 
Last Week
The Falcons remained undefeated in league play, but drew their first blemish with a 1-1 home tie versus Northwest Nazarene (Sept. 26). SPU overcame a third-minute penalty kick when Blaine Carver equalized in the 11th.  The Falcons got goals from Bryson Pavel, Matt Merchant and Stephen MacDonald in a 12-minute first-half span, then held on for a 3-2 victory over Montana State Billings (Sept. 28) in Seattle.
 
2013 Preview
Youth will be served this season as 18 underclassmen fill the 25-man roster. Nine freshmen and nine sophomores seek to grow up quickly under the leadership of three seniors and four juniors. The goal is a third consecutive playoff berth. Four starters return from last year's team, including leading scorer Blaine Carver. The All-GNAC forward netted eight goals with a league-leading five game-winning strikes. Carver, Kodiac Gamble and honorable mention All-GNAC pick Anthony Mohammed are the lone seniors. Sophomore forward Ian Adams was an honorable mention all-league performer in 2012.
 
2012 Review
The Falcons compiled an 11-3-5 record in 2012 and competed in the NCAA Division II Tournament for the second straight season. Despite a 1-1 tie against Cal State L.A. in a first-round playoff game, SPU's season was ended by a 5-4 setback in the penalty kick tiebreaker. The Falcons won their first six games in 2012, equaling the best start in school history. SPU posted a 7-3-4 league ledger to place third in the GNAC.
 
Fastest to Fifty
Mark Collings registered his 50th victory on Oct. 11, 2012 in his 88th game as head coach. That is the fastest to the 50-win mark for any Falcons coach. Legendary SPU coach Cliff McCrath (1970-2007) got his 50th win in game No. 94. At 57-29-16, Collings ranks No. 2 in all-time SPU coaching wins. McCrath was 512-190-87 at SPU.
 
This Week's Opponents
Simon Fraser (8-0-0, 4-0-0 GNAC) -- The No. 1-ranked Clan are in their fourth year as an NCAA Division II competitor and GNAC member. Last season was their first year of postseason eligibility and they advanced to the Final Four. SFU won the last three GNAC titles. First-place SFU is outscoring opponents 32-7, led by the five goals of Glenn Paden. The Clan have three shutouts and a 0.88 goals against average. SFU won the last four encounters with SPU, including a 1-0 overtime decision in the last meeting on Oct. 27, 2012 in Seattle, to take a 21-20-6 series edge. The teams did not play from 2007-09 after meeting at least once in each of the previous 32 years dating to 1975.
 
Western Washington (5-2-1, 3-0-1 GNAC) -- The second-place Vikings are coached for the first season by Greg Brisbon, a 12-year assistant with the program. Undefeated in the last four outings, WWU is led by the six goals of Andrew Weishaar. Goalkeeper Keegan Rogers has one shutout and a 0.96 goals against average. The Northwest rivals split the season series last year with SPU winning 1-0 on Sept. 29 in Bellingham and the Vikings posting a 3-1 decision on Oct. 25 in Seattle. The Falcons boast a 42-14-6 lead in the all-time series against Western.
 
Coach Collings
Fifth-year coach Mark Collings is the third head coach in the 46-year history of Seattle Pacific men's soccer. He has a 57-29-16 record with the Falcons. Collings led SPU to an 11-3-5 record in 2012 and the team's second straight playoff berth. The Falcons matched the best start in school history with six season-opening wins. A 7-3-4 GNAC record put SPU in third place. They tied Cal State L.A. 1-1 in the first round of the playoffs, but lost the penalty-kick tiebreaker 5-4. In 2011, Collings directed SPU to a 14-4-2 record capped by its first playoff appearance in five years. The Falcons earned the top seed in the West and advanced to the regional championship game. Collings was named the 2010 GNAC Co-Coach of the Year after leading 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.
 
GNAC Poll
For the fifth straight season, the Seattle Pacific men were projected second in the preseason Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer poll. The conference coaches named three-time defending champion Simon Fraser as this season's frontrunner. The Clan claimed the conference title in 2012 with a 12-1-1 record en route to the national semifinals. They received seven of eight first-place votes and 61 points in the preseason poll. SPU compiled 51 points to edge Northwest Nazarene for second. The Crusaders logged one first-place tally and 50 overall points. "I'm surprised we were picked second. That's setting a lofty goal for our group," Collings said. "We're very young. We lost quite a bit from last year with 10 seniors being gone."
 
Next Week
SPU remains completes a five-game homestand by hosting Saint Martin's on Oct. 12 at 4:30 p.m. at Interbay Stadium.