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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10
Northwest Nazarene at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 12
Montana State Billings at Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
• Buy Tickets:  www.spufalcons.com/tickets
• Webcast:  https://www.youtube.com/user/SPUsports
• LiveStats:  http://www.sidearmstats.com/spu/wsoc/
 
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17
Seattle Pacific at Concordia-Portland
7:00 p.m. PDT, Tuominem Yard, Portland, Ore.
 
• Webcast & LiveStats:  http://portal.stretchinternet.com/spu/
 
A six-game homestand concludes this week for Seattle Pacific men's soccer, which plays a single, road game next week. The Falcons (1-5-1, 0-2-0 GNAC), who seek to post their first Great Northwest Athletic Conference win and halt a three-game slide overall, host Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, Oct. 10. The Nighthawks (4-3-0, 0-1-0) lost three of their last four matchups versus SPU. Thursday's kick-off is 7 p.m. at Interbay Stadium, the same time and venue as Saturday's clash with Montana State Billings. The Yellowjackets (4-4-1, 1-1-0) split the season series with SPU in each of the last two years. The Falcons then hit the road to visit Concordia-Portland on Thursday, Oct. 17. The Cavaliers (4-2-0, 1-0-0) swept both 2018 contests, their first victories in nine all-time meetings with SPU.
 
Falcons Fast Fact
SPU has not scored the game's first goal since the season opener on Sept. 5 versus Sonoma State. The Falcons have not constructed a halftime lead this season, going into the locker room at intermission tied three times and trailing on four occasions.


 
Last Week
The Falcons opened conference play with a pair of home losses after comebacks fell short. Western Washington scored 32 seconds into its 3-1 win (Oct. 3). Titus Grant equalized in the 56th minute but the Vikings secured the result with goals in the 77th and 85th minutes. William Raphael netted three goals in the opening 31:19 to put 24th-ranked Simon Fraser up en route to a 4-2 win (Oct. 5). Late first-half goals by Grant and Ed Weise drew SPU within 3-2, but a 75th-minute insurance tally repelled that rally.
 
Throw-Ins
Titus Grant scored a goal in both games last week and distributed an assist. His three goals lead all SPU players ... The Falcons compiled seven goals during the last four games after scoring just one in their first three outings.
 
Shot Stoppers
SPU has two different goalkeepers with a double-digit save game during the same season for the first time since 1972 when Rex Yoder (14) and Dave Landry (12) accomplished the feat. Lars Helleren stopped 10 Sonoma State shots on Sept. 5 and Jordan Marwood compiled 12 saves at West Texas A&M on Sept. 16. The SPU school record of 14 saves was established by Yoder, who did it twice in 1972.

 

2019 Season Preview
Seattle Pacific was projected for a fourth-place finish by the GNAC coaches, but the talent is on hand to place much higher. Eight starters return from last year's team, including the top-five goal scorers. Headlining the list of returnees is first-team All-GNAC forward Titus Grant. The junior led the squad with 13 goals and five assists in 2018. Also back is sophomore Alden Massey, who netted six goals last season, sophomore Jake Ferry who had three and juniors Travis Swallow and Alex Mejia, who each scored twice. A trio of starters return on the backline in addition to holding midfielder Jose Benavides, a 2018 honorable mention All-GNAC honoree. Falcons defenders Nik Reierson and Ed Weise were similarly recognized by the conference.
 
Chico Cancelled
SPU's Sept. 7 home game versus Chico State was stopped in the 35th minute and eventually cancelled due to persistent lightning. All stats from that game were voided, including an eighth-minute header by defender Ed Weise that gave SPU a 1-0 lead.
 
Upcoming Opponents
Northwest Nazarene (4-3-0, 0-1-0 GNAC) -- Adam Pearce is in his first season as head coach of the Nighthawks. NNU's three-game winning streak was stopped by a 1-0 home loss to Montana State Billings in the GNAC opener. Jake Levine's team-leading five goals fueled an 11-10 edge over opponents in total goals. Goalkeeper Alex Nadermann played every minute between the posts and boasts three shutouts and a 1.43 goals against average. The Falcons lead the series 17-3-6, including a 3-2 home win on Oct. 8, 2018 in the last encounter. NNU won last year's first matchup, 2-0, on Sept. 20 in Nampa.
 
Montana State Billings (4-4-1, 1-1-0 GNAC) -- The Yellowjackets had a three-game winning streak halted by a 4-1 loss at Concordia-Portland. They won their conference opener 1-0 at Northwest Nazarene. Theo Lamare leads the MSUB attack with three goals while three other players have two tallies apiece. Goalkeeper Jessy Martin has played every minute in goal compiling one clean sheet and a 1.41 goals against average. SPU leads the all-time series 18-6-5 after the teams split two meetings last year. The Falcons escaped Billings with a 3-2 win on Sept. 27, 2018, rallying from a two-goal deficit to level the score 2-2 in the 70th minute on a Titus Grant penalty kick and getting the game-winner by Chris Cole with 44 seconds remaining. The Yellowjackets were 3-2 victors in the rematch on Oct. 20 in Seattle.
 
Concordia-Portland (4-2-0, 1-0-0 GNAC) -- The third-place Cavaliers won their last two games, including a 4-1 home win over Montana State Billings in their GNAC opener. CU is outscoring opponents 12-8 led by the four goals of Nicholas Denley and three from Kyle Dearborn. Goalkeeper Kenneth Symmes has one shutout and a 1.60 goals against average. The Cavs swept both meetings last season, their first wins in the series with the Falcons, who own a 5-2-2 series advantage. Concordia won 2-1 in overtime on Sept. 22, 2018 in Portland and then was a 1-0 victor in the rematch, on Oct. 18 in Seattle. Denley netted the game-winner in the 70th minute.
 
Coach Collings
Mark Collings enters his 12th season as head coach at his alma mater. He has directed Seattle Pacific to a 120-62-31 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 registered his 100th coaching victory with the Falcons on Oct. 28, 2016. He is the third head coach in the 51-year history of SPU men's soccer. Collings 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 Season Review
The young Seattle Pacific men's squad owned a winning record late in the 2018 campaign before ending the season with five straight losses, four of them one-goal decisions, to drop to 8-11-0 on the year. The Falcons, with eight underclassmen as primary starters, finished sixth in the GNAC standings at 4-8-0. They featured high-scoring forward Titus Grant, a first-team All-GNAC and third-team All-West Region honoree whose 13 goals and 31 points ranked third in the league. He tallied at least one point in nine of the final 11 games, with 11 goals and two assists during that stretch. Grant was the first Falcon to achieve a double-figure scoring season since Tyler Shultz netted 16 goals in 2011. Grant registered a rapid hat trick with three goals in an 8-minute, 19-second first-half span during a 3-2 home win on Oct. 13. Alden Massey, a second-team All-GNAC selection, contributed six goals. Holding midfielder Jose Benavides and defenders Nik Reierson and Ed Weise were honorable mention All-GNAC honorees.
 
Next Action
After a single game next week (Oct. 17 at Concordia), SPU plays a pair of games the following week. The Falcons visit Saint Martin's on Thursday, Oct. 24 at 3 p.m. before returning home to host Concordia-Portland on Oct. 26 at 7 p.m. at Interbay.