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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30 –
(#2) Seattle Pacific at Northwest Nazarene
12:30 p.m. PDT (1:30 pm MDT), NNU Soccer Field, Nampa, Idaho
• LiveStats:  http://portal.stretchinternet.com/nnu/
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 1 –
(#2) Seattle Pacific at Montana State Billings
1:00 p.m. PDT (2:00 p.m. MDT), Yellowjacket Field, Billings, Mont.
• Webcast & LiveStats:  http://portal.stretchinternet.com/msub/
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 8 –
Saint Martin's at (#2) Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
• LiveStats:  http://www.sidearmstats.com/spu/msoc/
 
Second-ranked and undefeated Seattle Pacific seeks to secure the 2014 Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer championship as the regular season wanes with its final three games. The first-place Falcons (14-0-1, 11-0-0) can claim the crown with a win or tie on Thursday, Oct. 30 at second-place Northwest Nazarene (11-3-1, 8-2-1). Kick-off is 12:30 p.m. Pacific Time (1:30 p.m. MDT) at NNU Soccer Field where the Crusaders have lost only once in six home games. The Falcons were 1-0 victors versus NNU on Oct. 11 in Seattle. SPU visits Montana State Billings (5-7-3, 5-5-1) on Saturday, Nov. 1 for a 1 p.m. Pacific Time clash (2 p.m. MDT). The Falcons won 2-1 on Oct. 9 in Seattle on an MSUB own goal. SPU concludes the regular season at home on Nov. 8 against Saint Martin's (3-12-0, 3-8-0). Seniors Evan Robicheau and Sean Russell will be honored in a ceremony before the 7 p.m. start at Interbay Stadium. The Falcons are vying for their 34th NCAA Division II Tournament berth. They participated in the playoffs in each of the last three seasons.
 
Ranking Report
Seattle Pacific climbed one spot, to No. 2, in this week's national coaches poll. That is its highest ranking since spending two weeks at No. 2 early in the 2012 season. The last time the Falcons were ranked No. 1 nationally was Sept. 20, 1994.
 
Title Talk
The first-place Falcons have a perfect 11-0-0 league ledger and a 33-point total that provides an eight-point cushion over second-place Northwest Nazarene with three games to play. They can clinch the GNAC championship with a win or tie at NNU. If the Falcons are unable to pick up a point Thursday, a win in either of the two remaining games secures the league crown or a tie guarantees at least a share of the title. The SPU men have not won an outright men's soccer conference crown since the GNAC was formed in 2001. They shared the 2006 league championship with Seattle University.
 

 
Record Run
The Falcons won their last 13 games, the longest winning streak in school history. They surpassed the previous mark on Oct. 18, a 10-game streak established in 1991.
 
Spectacular Start
SPU (14-0-1) is one of only four undefeated teams remaining among NCAA Division II men's soccer programs. The Falcons are off to the best start in the 47-year history of the program that includes five national championship teams. The record for sustained unbeaten streak to start a season was previously 10, held by the 1975 SPU team.
 
Dynamic Defense
SPU has allowed just seven goals in 15 games this season, and never more than one in any outing. Sophomore goalkeeper Cody Lang compiled eight shutouts and a 0.43 goals against average that leads the GNAC and ranks No. 6 nationally.

 

Player of the Week
Stephen MacDonald, who scored four goals in two SPU home victories, was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week for the second straight week. He had a hat trick in Thursday's 6-0 rout of South Dakota Mines, netting two quick scores in the opening 2:39 and adding a 49th-minute goal. That was the first three-goal effort by a Falcon since Tyler Schultz on Sept. 21, 2011. MacDonald scored in the fifth minute of Saturday's 1-0 win over U-Mary in a game halted at 81:29 when the Interbay Stadium lights went out due to a power outage throughout Seattle. The sophomore forward has six goals during the last four outings and leads SPU in goals (9), assists (6) and total points (24).
 
This Week's Opponents
The second-place Crusaders trail SPU by eight points in the standings with three games to play. Their potent offense outscored opponents 29-11 led by the eight goals of Erik Anderson and seven from 2013 GNAC Newcomer of the Year Fredy Razo. Goalkeeper Alfredo Ontiveros compiled seven shutouts and a 0.67 goals against average.  SPU won the first 11 meetings in the series before the teams drew in four consecutive encounters. The Falcons stopped that stretch of ties with a 1-0 win in this season's first meeting on Oct. 11 in Seattle. They beat then 22nd-ranked NNU on an 82nd-minute goal from Bryson Pavel.
 
Montana State Billings (5-7-3, 5-5-1 GNAC) -- The fourth-place Yellowjackets lost their last three games. Jess Thorge and Colin Ralston lead the Billings attack with six goals apiece. Goalkeeper Tom Lohmann has two shutouts and a 1.50 goals against average. SPU won this season's first encounter 2-1 on Oct. 9 in Seattle to increase its series advantage to 13-3-4. Jordan Thompson tied the game for the Falcons in the 58th minute and the game-winner occurred on an own goal with 1:49 left to play.
 
Coach Collings
Seventh-year coach Mark Collings is the third head coach in the 47-year history of Seattle Pacific men's soccer. He has a 78-32-19 record with the Falcons, including the current school-record run of 13 consecutive victories. Collings led SPU to a 12-4-3 record in 2013 and the team's third straight playoff berth. The Falcons put together a 14-game unbeaten streak that was the longest such single-season stretch in school history before this year. A 10-1-3 GNAC record put SPU in second place. They lost 1-0 to Chico State in the first round of the playoffs. In 2012, Collings directed SPU to a 11-3-5 record and in 2011 a 14-4-2 record was capped by the first playoff appearance in five years. Collings was named the 2010 GNAC Co-Coach of the Year after leading SPU to a 10-6-2 record following records of 11-5-3 in 2009 and 6-10-3 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.
 
2014 Preview
Eight starters are back for SPU, including first-team All-GNAC goalkeeper Cody Lang. The sophomore shot-stopper registered eight shutouts and an impressive 0.76 goals against average in 2013. Returning players accounted for 22 of the team's 29 goals last season, including four apiece from the trio of Stephen MacDonald, Bryson Pavel and Sean Russell. Sophomore Jordan Kollars was SPU's best playmaker with five assists while junior Danny Olivas was tops in total points with 10 on three goals and four assists. Pavel was a first-team All-GNAC defender as was sophomore Davis Karaica. Russell and Olivas were honorable mention all-league selections. The impressive list of returning starters is bolstered by six standout freshmen, sophomore midfielder Keenan dePinna who transferred from Oregon State, and red-shirt freshman Gabe Kellum from France.
 
2013 Review
The SPU men registered a 12-4-3 overall record in 2013, placed second in the GNAC standings with a 10-1-3 mark and participated in the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season. They lost 1-0 against Chico State in the opening round of the playoffs in La Jolla, Calif. The Falcons forged a 14-game unbeaten streak, the longest in school history during a single season. Highlighting the season was a 2-1 upset of top-ranked Simon Fraser on Oct 3 in Seattle. Danny Olivas netted a 79th-minute free kick to secure the victory. Three seniors departed, all of them starters: defender Kodiac Gamble, midfielder Anthony Mohammed and forward Blaine Carver. SPU outscored foes 29-15 led by a trio of four-goal scorers in Stephen MacDonald, Sean Russell and Bryson Pavel. First-team All-GNAC goalkeeper Cody Lang played every minute, posting eight shutouts and a 0.76 goals against average.