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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 31 –
Simon Fraser at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2 –
Central Washington at Seattle Pacific
1:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
• LiveStats for both games:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/wsoc
 
The regular-season comes to a close at home this week for the Seattle Pacific women's soccer team that hosts two games at Interbay Stadium. The Falcons (12-4-0, 9-3-0 GNAC) entertain Simon Fraser (1-11-2, 1-9-2) on Thursday, Oct. 31 at 7 p.m. SPU is undefeated in seven all-time meetings versus the Clan with six wins and one tie. On Saturday, Nov. 2 the third-place Falcons clash with second-place Central Washington (10-4-1, 9-2-1). A brief ceremony to honor SPU's four seniors will be conducted prior to the 1 p.m. kick-off. The Wildcats won this year's first meeting 1-0 in Ellensburg. SPU has already secured a GNAC Tournament berth and is playing for a higher seed and positioning itself for an NCAA Division II playoff invitation.
 
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 ceremony will be conducted to honor SPU's quartet of seniors. Josie Graybeal, Natalie Harold, Stephanie Harold and Kaylie Winston will make their final regular-season home appearances at Interbay Stadium. That four-player class helped the Falcons compile a 60-13-4 record during their collegiate careers and earn NCAA Tournament berths every season.
 


GNAC Tourney
The four-team field is already set for next week's 2013 GNAC Tournament at Starfire Stadium in Tukwila, Wash. Seattle Pacific will be joined by Western Washington, Central Washington and Western Oregon. The pairings will be determined by this week's results and their impact on the final regular-season standings. The Nos. 2 & 3 seeds play the first semifinal on Nov. 7 at 4 p.m. followed by the Nos. 1 & 4 seeds at 7 p.m. The championship game will be played on Nov. 9 at 1 p.m. The winner gets the GNAC's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.
 
Playoff Pursuit
Seattle Pacific seeks to return to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the 11th straight season. The Falcons won the 2008 national championship. Last year they advanced to the West Region semifinal before losing 2-1 in double overtime at UC San Diego. SPU reached the Final Four on three occasions (2005, 2007, 2008).
 
Home Sweet Home
The SPU women lost only once in their last 17 games at Interbay Stadium and suffered just four setbacks in their last 76 homes games with a 67-4-5 mark since Sept. 30, 2006. SPU had a 45-game home unbeaten streak snapped on Sept. 30, 2010 with a 1-0 loss to Western Washington. The Falcons forged an 8-0-1 home record last year. They were 9-2-0 in 2011, 7-1-1 in 2010, 11-0-1 in 2009, 11-0-2 in 2008 and 15-0 in 2007.
 
Last Week
SPU rallied from a 2-0 second-half deficit to beat Saint Martin's 3-2 at home on Oct. 24. Demi Waitley netted the 84th-minute game-winner. On Oct. 26, Laura Moore scored 29 seconds before halftime in a 1-0 win at Western Oregon. That was the first loss and the first goal surrendered by the Wolves at home this season in Monmouth, Ore.
 
Throw-In
Laura Moore played a role in seven of SPU's 12 game-winning goals. Four of her team-leading eight goals were game-winning strikes and she assisted on three others.
 
This Week's Opponents
Simon Fraser (1-11-2, 1-9-2 GNAC) -- The Clan are the newest members of the GNAC, entering the league in 2010 after becoming the first Canadian school to join the NCAA. Shelley Howieson is in her 25th season as head coach, having directed SFU to two NAIA national championships, in 1996 and 2000. The Clan picked up their first win in their last outing, a 2-1 overtime decision against Northwest Nazarene.  Sophie D'Souza has two goals to lead SFU, which has been outscored 37-7.  Four goalkeepers combined for a 2.53 goals against average. The Falcons own a 6-0-1 series edge, including a 3-0 win on Oct. 5 in Burnaby, B.C.
 
Central Washington (10-4-1, 9-2-1 GNAC) -- The second-place Wildcats are undefeated in their last six outings, including five wins. That streak started on Oct. 10 with a 1-0 home win over SPU. Danielle Brandli (7) and Savanna Moorehouse (6) accounted for 13 of CWU's 22 goals. Goalkeeper Kayla Lipston and Amanda White combined for five shutouts and a 0.84 goals against average.  SPU leads the all-time series 20-3-2. The teams played to a 1-1 draw on Sept. 22, 2012 in the last Seattle meeting.
 
GNAC Poll
The SPU women won three of the last four Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships. Last year's runner-up, SPU was selected by the GNAC coaches to again place second in their preseason poll. Western Washington was projected to repeat as league champion, receiving five first-place votes and 61 points. SPU collected the remaining three first-place tallies en route to a 58-point total. Montana State Billings was third in the preseason poll with 41 points followed by Western Oregon (35), Central Washington (34), Saint Martin's (33), Northwest Nazarene (17) and Simon Fraser (9). SPU won eight of the 12 titles since the GNAC began sponsoring women's soccer in 2001.
 
Coach Chuck Sekyra
In his 11th season, Chuck Sekyra has guided Seattle Pacific to a remarkable 194-27-16 record, three Final Four appearances and the 2008 national championship. He directed seven of those teams to GNAC championships, and all 10 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.
 
Next Week
Postseason play begins with the GNAC Tournament semifinals on Thursday, Nov. 7 at Starfire Stadium in Tukwila, Wash. Game times are 4 and 7 p.m. The semifinal victors meet in the championship game on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 1 p.m.