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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 13
Hawaii Pacific at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
• Webcast:  https://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/ 
• LiveStats:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/msoc/
 
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15
Hawaii-Hilo at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash. – 50th Year Celebration
• Webcast:  https://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/ 
• LiveStats:  www.sidearmstats.com/spu/msoc/
 
The schedule finally provides a travel respite for the Seattle Pacific men, who this week host their first Interbay Stadium games of 2018. Fresh off Saturday's 2-1 win at Point Loma, the Falcons (1-3-0) conduct their home opener on Thursday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. against Hawaii Pacific (1-0-0). The Sharks won their only outing, 2-0 over Chaminade. On Saturday, Sept. 15 Hawaii-Hilo (0-0-0) invades Interbay Stadium for a 7 p.m. clash. That marks the first ever meeting between SPU and the Vulcans, who open their 2018 season on Tuesday at Western Washington. The Falcons begin Great Northwest Athletic Conference play on the road next week, beginning at Northwest Nazarene on Sept. 20.
 
Celebrating 50 Years
The most successful program in NCAA Division II history, Seattle Pacific celebrates its 50th men's soccer anniversary with a special weekend for former players and coaches, capped by a ceremony during the 7 p.m. game Saturday at Interbay Stadium. The Falcons own national records for consecutive winning seasons (37 from 1971-2007), total playoff berths (34) and championship game appearances (10). SPU parlayed five of those title game clashes into national championships, claiming the crown in 1978, 1983, 1985, 1986 and 1993.The inaugural Seattle Pacific team of 1968 was coached by Arnie Aizstrauts, who served two seasons. Only two other men have directed the Falcons, Cliff McCrath from 1970 to 2007 and current coach Mark Collings, who took the helm in 2008. SPU won its inaugural game, 4-0, on Oct. 9, 1968 over Charles Wright Academy.
 
 
Get Tickets in Advance
Falcons fans can now obtain tickets in advance for all home events. Buy tickets online at: http://siteline.vendini.com/site/spufalcons.com   All seats for SPU soccer are general admission and priced at $7 for adults and $5 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) 281-2393 in advance.
 
Throw-Ins
This week's two games are the only home appearances in the Falcons first 10 games ... Seven players made their SPU debut this year with freshmen Lars Helleren, Alden Massey, Mario Vukic and Ed Weise each drawing at least three starts ... The Falcons played shorthanded in their first two games, losses at Chico State and Sonoma State. Titus Grant drew two yellow cards on Aug. 30 and Sam Rucklos was shown red on Sept. 1.
 
Balanced Attack
All five of the Falcons goals were scored by a different player, including Travis Swallow who netted Saturday's game winner at Point Loma. Playmaking duties have also been spread out as the four assists were distributed by a quartet of unique players.
 
Last Week
The Falcons owned 2-0 first-half leads in both games, but settled for a road split in southern California. Despite goals from Jake Ferry and Jason Schmidt, SPU surrendered three second-half scores in a 3-2 loss at Azusa Pacific (Sept. 6). Titus Grant and Travis Swallow were the scoring duo at Point Loma (Sept. 8) and the Falcons held on for a 2-1 victory, their first of the season. Red-shirt freshman Lars Helleren got the win in goal.
 
This Week's Opponents
Hawaii Pacific (1-0-0, 0-0-0 PacWest) -- The Sharks have played just one contest prior to their game at SPU, a 2-0 home win versus Chaminade. Jair Espinoza leads HPU with one goal and one assist. Goalkeeper Chandler Schur stopped two shots en route to a shutout in the Sept. 1 opener. He got backline help from Jacob Malach, who was named the PacWest Defender of the Week on Sept. 3. The Sharks compiled a 6-8-3 record in 2017. The Falcons won all three previous meetings with HPU by a combined 7-0 tally. They were 5-0 victors in 1990 in Tacoma and won 1-0 at home in 1995. SPU escaped with a 1-0 overtime victory in the last encounter. Andy Wolverton's penalty kick, with 10 seconds left in the final overtime, won it on Oct. 8, 2010 at Interbay Stadium.
 
Hawaii-Hilo (0-0-0, 0-0-0 PacWest) -- The Vulcans start their season with a three-game road trip to the Northwest, playing Tuesday at Western Washington and Thursday at Saint Martin's before visiting Seattle. Coach Paul Regrutto is in his first season back in charge at Hilo. He was the Vulcans first ever men's soccer coach in 2006 and returns after coaching the Colorado State-Pueblo women four four seasons followed by a year off. Eight transfers occupy the roster for UHH, which had a 2-14 record in 2017. The Sept. 15 encounter marks the first ever men's soccer meeting between SPU and the Vulcans.

 

Coach Collings
Mark Collings enters his 11th season as head coach at his alma mater. He has directed Seattle Pacific to a 112-49-30 record, two GNAC championships and a stretch of five consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament berths from 2011-15. His coaching highlights include school-record streaks of 13 consecutive victories and 15 games unbeaten established in 2014 along with absorbing the fewest losses in a campaign with just one in 2015 (14-1-4). Collings is the third head coach in the 51-year history of SPU men's soccer. He collected his third GNAC Coach of the Year award in 2015 (also 2010 & 2014). 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 as a defender on SPU's 1998 Final Four team, Collings was a five-year assistant coach for the Falcons.
 
2018 Preview
SPU was projected to replicate last season's runner-up finish according to the preseason GNAC coaches poll. Last year, the Falcons posted an 11-5-1 record, but were absent from the NCAA Division II Tournament field for only the second time since 2010. They finished second in the GNAC standings with a 7-4-1 record, just two points back of Simon Fraser. Five starters return from last year's team, including senior goalkeeper Kary Whitney, who opened all but one game last season while compiling a 1.43 goals against average. The defense features returning senior starters Jacob Bohl and Luke Postma. Sophomore Jose Benavides, an honorable mention All-GNAC performer, is back to bolster the midfield. The SPU offense looks to replace its top-four point producers. Sophomore Alex Mejia is the top returning scorer with eight points, on three goals and two assists. Junior forward Samuel Agyei netted two goals last year. The cadre of returning regulars is bolstered by six players that started at least once in 2017, along with eight true freshmen and University of Portland transfer Reid Baez.
 
GNAC Title Hunt
The SPU men won back-to-back Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) soccer championships, in 2014 and 2015, before Simon Fraser won the last two crowns. The Falcons vie for their fourth league title since the GNAC was formed in 2001.
 
Next Week
The SPU men open conference play on the road, visiting Northwest Nazarene on Sept. 20 and Concordia (Ore.) on Sept. 22. Those are the first of four consecutive GNAC away games for the Falcons, who play at Montana State Billings on Sept. 27 and Saint Martin's on Sept. 29. Their reward for the road-heavy schedule is a stretch of six straight home games from Oct. 4 through Oct. 20.