Box Score    |     Final Stats     |     VIDEO: Davis  Karaica

SEATTLE – Quality prevailed over quantity this week at Interbay Stadium.
 
Seventh-ranked Seattle Pacific efficiently scored three goals on only six first-half shots Saturday en route to a 3-1 victory over four-time defending Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer champion Simon Fraser.
 
The first-place Falcons (8-0-1) remained undefeated, improving to 5-0 in league play. They are tied atop the GNAC standings with Northwest Nazarene, which visits Seattle on Saturday night.

SPU has matched the 1987 team for the best start in school history. That squad also opened the season 8-0-1 before losing its 10th game. The longest unbeaten streak to start a season was turned in by the 1975 Falcons, who reached game No. 10 (6-0-4) without a loss before falling in their 11th outing.
 


Simon Fraser (3-3-2), an NCAA Division II national semifinalist each of the last two years, fell to 1-2-2 in conference play.
 
That record is deceiving according to SPU coach Mark Collings, who believes this year's Simon Fraser squad is as potent as its championship predecessors.
 
"They are every bit as good as advertised. They had us on our heels for a lot of this game, but we got some timely goals.
 
"We put in a big effort tonight. When we scored the first one and they came right back, they showed the true character that they have as champions. For us to respond with two more goals before the end of the half was big."
 
Saturday's victory evened the all-time series at 22-22-6 between these longtime Northwest rivals.
 
SPU parlayed half of its shots into goals during the opening 45 minutes, the first two coming on headers.

 

Junior Danny Olivas (Phoenix, Ariz.) started the scoring at 15:48 with a four-yard header near the right post off a cross from the left by Bryson Pavel (Boise, Idaho). That was the second goal of the season for Olivas.

It was Olivas who netted a 79th-minute free kick in last year's meeting in Seattle. The Falcons were 2-1 victors over then No. 1-ranked Simon Fraser, which had won the previous four encounters.
 
The Clan equalized two minutes later on Jovan Blagojevic's league-leading ninth goal. He netted an eight-yard header near the left post at 17:47 off a long cross from Ryan Dhillon on the right wing.
 
SPU's decisive tally came at 26:17 off the head of sophomore defender Davis Karaica (Snoqualmie, Wash./Mt. Si HS). Jordan Kollars (Silverdale, Wash./Central Kitsap HS) served a free kick from deep on the right side toward the left post, locating Karaica for a seven-yard strike.
 
Less than one minute after entering the game, reserve forwards Jordan Thompson and Julian White combined for the Falcons third goal. They took the field at 33:13 and at 34:12 Thompson (Bellevue, Wash./Newport HS) was celebrating his second score of the season.
 
White, a freshman from Redmond (Wash.) High School, raced down the right flank with the ball before coming to a quick stop near the end line. After waiting for momentum to carry a defender past him, White took a dribble before sliding a pass across the goalmouth where Thompson back-heeled it inside the right post.
 
Coach Collings credited the effort of outside backs Pavel and Jeffrey Collings, his son, as pivotal to the positive outcome.

 

"The two wingers for Simon Fraser are fantastic. Bryson and Jeffery did a tremendous job on those two guys. It was a one-on-one battle for them for 90 minutes and the two of them really withstood a lot and did a great job.
 
"They had a lot of support from Davis (Karaica) and Evan (Robicheau) as well. But in particular we really felt like Bryson and Jeffery would have to have a good game, and they both did."
 
Sophomore goalkeeper Cody Lang (Spokane, Wash./Lewis & Clark HS) was credited with two saves for the Falcons, who were outshot by a 13-10 margin.
 
The hosts had the more dangerous chances, though, as five of their attempts were directly on goal compared to just three for Simon Fraser.
 
In statistical terms, a shot is any attempt by a player to direct the ball toward the goal. Shots on goal are those accurate attempts that either hit the mark or would have gone in were it not saved by the goalkeeper or cleared off the line by a defender.
 
"We've been talking about getting more and more shots on goal," Collings explained. "I told them that good things happen when you put shots on frame. It's something that we've really focused on in training."
 
For the second straight game the Falcons were on the short end of the overall shot count, but posted a 3-1 victory. In Thursday's win, visiting Western Washington had a slim 11-9 shot edge, but lost the shots-on-goal battle by a 5-2 margin.
 
"It's good to see us score three goals in consecutive games, that's for sure," Collings said.
 
The Falcons amassed 11 goals during their last three games, two more than the nine they scored during the season's first six outings.
 
Clan keeper Brandon Watson stopped two shots on Saturday.
 
The SPU men continue their current four-game homestand on Thursday when Montana State Billings invades Interbay Stadium for a 4:30 p.m. game. That is the opener of a soccer doubleheader with the women, who play the Yellowjackets in the 7 p.m. nightcap.
 
"We're going to enjoy this tonight and then we're going to get back to work on Monday," Collings said. "I just told the guys that, 'It's one win and we're getting closer to where we want to be, but we still have a lot left.'
 
"It just comes down to getting better every day and I think we got better tonight. That will be our focus between now and next week, to get better and put together a good performance against Billings."
 
 
NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, Oct. 4, 2014
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash.
 
at (#7) Seattle Pacific 3, Simon Fraser 1
 
Scoring – 1, SPU, Danny Olivas (Bryson Pavel), 15:48. 2, SF, Jovan Blagojevic (Ryan Dhillon), 17:47. 3, SPU, Davis Karaica (Jordan Kollars), 26:17. 4, SPU, Jordan Thompson (Julian White), 34:12.
 
Shots – SF 13, SPU 10.
Saves – SF 2 (Brandon Watson), SPU 2 (Cody Lang).
Corner Kicks – SF 4, SPU 4.
Fouls – SF 17, SPU 14.
Offsides – SF 2, SPU 4.
 
Records
Seattle Pacific 8-0-1, 5-0-0 GNAC
Simon Fraser 3-3-2, 1-2-2 GNAC
 
Next SPU Men's Game
Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific
Thursday, Oct. 9, 4:30 p.m. PDT
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash.