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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2
Western Oregon at Seattle Pacific
1:00.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7
(#7) Western Washington at Seattle Pacific
7:00.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific
4:30 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash. -- SENIOR DAY
 
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A three-game Interbay Stadium homestand concludes the regular-season slate for Seattle Pacific women's soccer. The Falcons (9-6-0, 7-2-0 GNAC) seek to claim first place or at least secure second-place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings, having already clinched a berth in the GNAC Tournament. SPU can avenge its only league losses in the next two games. The Falcons host Western Oregon on Saturday, Nov. 2 at 1 p.m. The Wolves were 2-0 winners on Oct. 5 in Monmouth to halt a 31-game winless streak versus SPU dating to 2002. On Thursday, Nov. 7 at 7 p.m., seventh-ranked and league-leading Western Washington invades Interbay. The Vikings (13-2-0, 9-0-0) are undefeated in GNAC play, outscoring opponents by a 37-2 margin, including a 3-0 win over the Falcons on Oct. 24 in Bellingham. WWU has not lost to SPU since a 1-0 home defeat on Oct. 27, 2012, posting a 15-0-3 series record since then. The Falcons four seniors will be recognized before the 4:30 p.m. kick-off on Saturday, Nov. 9 against Northwest Nazarene. SPU beat the Nighthawks (5-7-2, 2-4-2) 3-0 on Sept. 26 to increase its series lead to 32-3-0.
 
Falcons Fast Fact
The Falcons need one more win to reach 10 for the season. That would be the 18th time in the program's 19 years that SPU reached the double-digit win plateau.

SAMEA  ALJUNDI INTERVIEW

 
Top-10 Foes
SPU's last win over a top-10 ranked opponent was a 1-0 double-overtime decision over No. 2 West Florida on Dec. 6, 2008 in the NCAA championship game. The Falcons are winless in 18 encounters since then with an 0-16-2 record versus top-10 teams.
 
Clash of the Titlists
Both Seattle Pacific and Western Washington have captured an NCAA Division II women's soccer national championship. The Falcons claimed the 2008 crown, defeating West Florida 1-0 on a golden goal by Janae Godoy. Western won the 2016 title with a 3-2 victory over Grand Valley State. They are the dominant GNAC schools, combining to win 15 of the 18 regular-season crowns, SPU with eight titles and WWU seven.
 
Senior Salute
Before the Nov. 9 game, a ceremony will be conducted to honor SPU's quartet of seniors. Asia Cayetano, Mason Minder, Megan Moore and Megan Nielsen will play their final regular-season Interbay Stadium games. That class helped the Falcons compile a 42-24-6 record so far during their collegiate careers (20-6-3 at Interbay) while qualifying for four GNAC Tournaments and two NCAA playoffs.
 
Working Overtime
 

Four Falcons games have gone into overtime and none of them required the second OT session, each ending with early golden goals. Three of them finished within two minutes and the other went 6:23. SPU has a 2-2-0 record in those overtime contests with Claire Neder and Megan Moore getting golden goals in its wins.
 
Throw-Ins
Megan Moore has a point in four of the last five games with a goal and four assists ... Sophia Chilczuk leads SPU with five goals, including a brace in the last outing.
 
GNAC Tournament
Seattle Pacific's Interbay Stadium will host the 2019 GNAC Women's Soccer Tournament. Semifinal games are slated for 4 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 14 with the winners meeting in the championship game on Nov. 16 at 1 p.m. The champion receives the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Division II Tournament. The four-team field is taking shape with Western Washington and SPU already clinching berths and seven teams in contention for the other two spots. SPU won GNAC Tournament titles in 2013 and 2014.
 
Upcoming Opponents
Western Oregon (8-4-3, 5-2-2 GNAC) -- Kasey Bingham is in her first season as head coach of the Wolves, who are undefeated in their last four games with a 3-0-1 record. WOU is outscoring foes 22-14 paced by the five goals and six assists of Alyssa Tomasini. Goalkeeper Alex Qualls compiled a 0.92 goals against average with six shutouts, including clean sheets in each of the last three outings. The Wolves won this year's first matchup 2-0 on Oct. 5 in Monmouth, Ore. behind two early second-half goals. That was WOU's first win over the Falcons since 2002, halting a 31-game series unbeaten streak (30-0-1) for SPU, which leads 31-3-1 in all-time meetings.
 
(#7) Western Washington (13-2-0, 9-0-0 GNAC) -- The seventh-ranked Vikings won their last nine games, all of them GNAC contests, by a combined score of 37-2. Overall, Western is outscoring opponents 43-5 led by the six goals of Zoe Milburn. Karli White has four goals and a team-leading seven assists. Goalkeeper Natalie Dierickx has seven shutouts and a 0.39 goals against average. Just four foes have scored on WWU. On Sept. 25, Colorado Mines became the only team to net two goals. Travis Connell, a four-year SPU men's soccer letterman (1991-95), is in his 17th year and owns WWU's all-time mark with 251 coaching wins. WWU leads the all-time series 19-18-6 and has not lost to the Falcons since Oct. 27, 2012, covering a span of 18 games during which Western went 15-0-3. The Vikings were 3-0 victors in this year's first meeting, on Oct. 24 in Bellingham.  That was their 11th consecutive victory over SPU.
 
Northwest Nazarene (5-7-2, 2-4-2) -- The Nighthawks are winless in their last four outings despite allowing only three goals and never surrendering more than one in a game. They did not net a goal of their own while going 0-3-1 during that span. NNU is outscoring opponents by a 19-16 margin overall, paced by the eight goals of Rikki Myers. Goalkeeper Aexis Montoya has a fine 1.11 goals against average and tops the GNAC with 83 saves. The Falcons won this season's first encounter, 3-0 on Sept. 26 in Nampa, Idaho.  SPU won the last two meetings and owns a commanding 32-3-0 advantage in the all-time series.
 
Coach Busey
Arby Busey is in his 14th year on the Seattle Pacific staff and his fifth as head coach. In 2018, he directed the Falcons to a 12-6-2 record and a third-place tie in the GNAC standings (8-3-1) en route to an NCAA Tournament berth. He has a 46-29-8 record at SPU, a ledger that doesn't include 10 wins from 2015 that were vacated due to the use of an ineligible player. SPU advanced to the NCAA Division II playoffs in Busey's first two seasons at the helm and again last year. From his assistant post from 2006-14, Busey helped the Falcons to an impressive 95-30-12 record and playoff appearances each year. SPU won the 2008 NCAA Division II championship and reached the 2007 national semifinals. He is a 1993 graduate of Villanova and was the Idaho head coach from 2002-04 where he had an 8-40-7 record.
 
2019 Season Preview
Six starters return from the NCAA playoff team that outscored opponents 40-19 in 2018. There are holes to fill as less than half (18 of 40) of last year's goals were netted by returnees. The Falcons lost their second- and third-leading scorers in Kasey Reeve (7 goals) and Julia DeVere (4), the GNAC Defender of the Year. Heading the list of returnees is second-team all-region forward Sophia Chilczuk, who led SPU with eight goals in 2018. Megan Moore was third-team all-region with three assists and midfield mate Claire Neder chipped in three goals and three assists. The senior duo of Megan Nielsen and Asia Cayetano returns after starting every game last season on the back line. Sophomore goalkeeper Riley Travis posted a 1.08 goals against average in 2018.
 
2018 Season Review
The SPU women returned to the NCAA playoffs in 2018 after a one-year absence. The Falcons fashioned a 12-6-2 overall record and tied for third in the GNAC standings with an 8-3-1 mark. They outscored opponents 40-19 led by the eight goals of Sophia Chilczuk. Departing seniors accounted for 22 goals with seven of them from Kasey Reeve and four from All-American defender Julia DeVere, who topped the team with seven assists. DeVere was voted the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year.