• STATS (pdf)   |   • VIDEO: Sam  Malloch goal

BURNABY, B.C. – Titus Grant set up the tying goal and netted the game-winner on a second-half penalty kick Saturday for Seattle Pacific, which defeated Simon Fraser 2-1 in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference men's soccer game at Terry Fox Field.
 
The Falcons (4-9-1) improved to 3-6-0 in league play while stopping a four-game losing streak in the series with SFU. Then 24th-ranked Simon Fraser was a 4-2 victor in this season's first meeting, on Oct. 5 in Seattle.
 
SPU won in Burnaby, B.C. for the first time since 2014, having lost in each of their previous four visits.
 
Grant assisted on Sam Malloch's 33rd-minute strike that leveled the score, 1-1, before notching the game winner with 14:13 left to play.
 
"This was probably the most complete 90 minutes we've played on the year, just as far as work ethic, mental focus and discipline," said SPU coach Mark Collings. "We deserved this one and the guys played their hearts out."

SAM MALLOCH GOAL

 The three-time defending GNAC champion Clan (7-4-1) fell to 4-3-1 in conference action.
 
Simon Fraser got on the scoreboard just 2-minutes, 46-seconds into the contest with a goal by Bjorn Borren.
 
Another Early Goal
Matteo Polisi dribbled down the right flank and delivered a far-post cross to Mark Talisuna who first-timed the ball back to the center of the goalmouth. Borren was there for an easy, four-yard tap-in.
 
SPU has conceded the opening goal in 11 of its 14 games this season.
 
Grant recorded the Falcons first shot on goal, in the 25th minute, forcing goalkeeper Aidan Bain to punch the ball away at the left post.
 
The Equalizer
Eight minutes later he helped create the tying goal. Eduardo Calvo-Perez utilized some nifty footwork to make space on the left wing. He fed a short pass to Grant who took two dribbles toward the left edge of the box before slipping a pass to Malloch, who finished inside the left post at 32:20 with his first goal of the season.
 
"Boy, we needed it," Collings exclaimed of Malloch's goal. "After conceding an early goal again, it just gave our guys a sense of belief that we were looking for. It's not that we didn't believe, but it just helped us bust through the wall and be determined to do this tonight. It gave us a lot of confidence heading into halftime."
 
The halftime shot count was 7-3 in favor of the hosts. The second half was a defensive struggle with just four shots between the two teams. The Falcons' only attempt after intermission was deposited for a goal.
 
Simon Fraser played with 10 men for the final 24 minutes after Eric de Graff was sent off after receiving his second yellow card of the night at 66:00.
 
The Game-Winner
 

The game-winning tally came on Grant's third successful penalty kick in as many tries this season. He was fouled from behind in the left side of the Simon Fraser box by Joey Mijaljevic and stepped to the 12-yard spot to place the free shot into the left side at 75:47.
 
Grant increased his team-leading total to eight goals, double that of any of other Falcon. The junior forward is also tops with six assists to account for over one-third of SPU's total points (22 of 61).
 
"He's definitely someone that we lean on to get our attack going and create goals and finish goals. Tonight Titus did a really good job of putting pressure on them," Collings said. "I'm certainly proud of his effort, which was fantastic. But it was a team effort.
 
"There have been plenty of times that we haven't gotten the ball to him or teams have taken him away and we haven't punished them in other areas of the field. Tonight, we did a good job of not only playing through him, but then taking other chances when we had them."
 
Sophomore goalkeeper Lars Helleren made five saves for the Falcons, who were outshot by a 10-4 margin. The visitors were extremely efficient as three of those four attempts were sent directly on frame and two found the back of the net.
 
Bain was credited with one save for Simon Fraser.
 
Next Week
The Seattle Pacific men return home to host their final home game next Saturday, Nov. 9 with a 7 p.m. matchup against Saint Martin's at Interbay Stadium. That is the nightcap of a soccer doubleheader with the Falcons women, who host Northwest Nazarene at 4:30 p.m.
 
"We want to win that game. We haven't won two in a row all year, so it would be nice to continue this momentum," Collings said. "Every game is a new opportunity for us to establish ourselves and get us moving in the right direction. Tonight was certainly a big step. We've shown glimpses of what we can do and it would be nice to put together back-to-back 90-minute games."
 
Senior Salute
 

Saturday will be the final home playing appearance for the Falcons lone senior, Trevor Lee. The product of Puyallup (Wash.) High School will be honored with a brief ceremony before kick-off next weekend.
 
"Trevor has been a big part of the team. It's been an interesting four years for him with different guys being here and others not being here. Trevor stayed the course," Collings described. "He's such a humble guy and he's always willing to do a variety of things.
 
"We've played Trevor in a number of positions and no matter what, he just goes out and does what we ask him to do. He doesn't complain about the job that we ask him to do, he just does it. Because of that his teammates have a tremendous amount of respect for him. He's done a really good job of helping to lead us through a tough season."
 
NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, November 2, 2019
Terry Fox Field / Burnaby, B.C.
 
Seattle Pacific 2, at Simon Fraser 1
 
Scoring – 1, SF, Bjorn Borren (Mark Talisuna), 2:46; 2, SPU, Sam Malloch (Titus Grant, Eduardo Calvo-Salinas), 32:20; 3, SPU, Titus Grant (PK), 75:47.
 
                       1   2  --  TOTAL
Seattle Pacific        1   1  --    2
Simon Fraser           1   0  --    1
 
Shots – SPU 4, SF 10.
Shots on Goal -- SPU 3, SF 6.
Saves – SPU 5 (Lars Helleren), SF 1 (Aidan Bain).
Corner Kicks – SPU 5, SF 6.
Fouls – SPU 15, SF 15.
Offsides – SPU 2, SF 3.
Yellow Cards – SPU 2, SF 6.
Red Cards – SPU 0, SF 1 (Eric de Graff, 66:00).
 
Records
Seattle Pacific 4-9-1,  3-6-0 GNAC
Simon Fraser 7-4-1,  4-3-1 GNAC
 
Next SPU Men's Soccer Game
Saint Martin's at Seattle Pacific
Saturday, Nov. 9, 7:00 p.m. PDT
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash.