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SEATTLE – James Ndubueze netted two second-half goals Saturday, leading third-ranked Azusa Pacific to a 2-0 men's soccer win over Seattle Pacific in a non-conference men's soccer game at Interbay Stadium.
 
The Azusa forward increased his season total to seven goals, breaching the SPU goal in the 49th and 86th minutes.
 
The Falcons (1-3-1) completed the non-conference portion of their schedule, having twice lost to top-10 ranked teams in the last three outings. In between they rallied from a three-goal deficit on Thursday to defeat Point Loma 4-3 on a golden goal by Titus Grant.
 
Several Shots, No Goals
SPU had numerous quality chances Saturday, especially during the second half.
 
In the 52nd minute, Eduardo Calvo-Salinas intercepted a pass in APU territory and passed to Mario Vukic, who was streaking into the right side of the box. A defender deflected Vukic's shot that continued toward the left post but trickled wide.
 
Seven minutes later Vukic had an even more dangerous opportunity. He lofted a shot from the top of the  box that carried over the onrushing goalkeeper, but was tracked down and cleared away by Cougars defender Isaac Bawa before it reached the goal line.
 
SPU's Alden Massey sprinted ahead of the pack to reach a ball at the left corner of the box in the 68th minute. His chip over the onrushing goalkeeper sailed to the left of the goal.
 
With 10 minutes left to play, Grant broke free into the box but Nathanael Linquist managed to race off his line in time to block the attempted shot.
 
"It was a frustrating night for us. We had three one-on-ones with the keeper and missed all three. Another one beat the keeper but got cleared off the line," said SPU coach Mark Collings. "After they scored, our response was great and we really put them under a lot of pressure. For as poor as we were in the first half, we were better in the second half.
 
"We created enough opportunities to score goals and we just didn't. That's kind of been the frustrating part so far in the year."
 
Linquist was credited with three saves en route to the shutout.

 

Jordan Marwood stopped six shots in his second start for the Falcons.
 
The visitors compiled a 27-11 shot advantage. Their margin was 13-2 during the first half, but the teams went into their locker rooms tied, 0-0.
 
Scoring Summary
Just over three minutes after halftime Azusa got on the board, capitalizing on a counter-attack. David Kwinn fed a pass to Carlos Granados, who found Ndubueze near the top of the box. The 19-yard shot found a path between two SPU defenders and Marwood, sliding just inside the left post at 48:19.
 
The Cougars (7-0-0) got an insurance tally at 85:39 to preserve their perfect record. Quick passes from Arturo Astorga and Danillo Dias set up Ndubueze near the left corner of the 6-yard box for an easy seven-yard finish.
 
"He was really good," Collings said about Ndubueze. "We got caught in the counter on the first one and he finished it. On the second one, we were pushing numbers forward so we're going to be exposed at the back."
 
In the first half, the Cougars reeled off nine shots before SPU's first attempt, by Jake Ferry at 27:14. His shot from the right side of the box was saved at the post by Linquist.
 
In the 35th minute Grant got loose on the dribble down the left flank, but his low shot traveled wide to the left.
 
Next Week
The SPU men continue their current six-game homestand with a pair of games next week. They begin Great Northwest Athletic Conference play against Western Washington on Thursday at 7 p.m. and then clash with 20th-ranked Simon Fraser on Saturday at 7 p.m. Both games take place at Interbay Stadium.
 
"At this point with how our season has gone you have to put everything into winning the GNAC to get into the NCAA Tournament," Collings said. "That starts Thursday with Western. They're very good and that will be a tough one. There are a lot of players that know each other so that always adds another dimension to the game.
 
"If we can start to finish some of these chances that we're creating we'll be really difficult to deal with."
 
NCAA MEN'S SOCCER
Saturday, September 28, 2019
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash.
 
(#3) Azusa Pacific 2, at Seattle Pacific 0
 
Scoring – 1, James Ndubueze (Carlos Granados, David Kwinn), 48:19; 2, APU, Ndubueze (Danilo Dias, Arturo Astorga), 85:39.
 
                       1   2  --  TOTAL
Azusa Pacific          0   2  --    2
Seattle Pacific        0   0  --    0
 
Shots – APU 27, SPU 11.
Shots on Goal -- APU 8, SPU 4.
Saves – APU 4 (Nathanael Lindquist 3, Team 1), SPU 6 (Jordan Marwood).
Corner Kicks – APU 9, SPU 3.
Fouls – APU 11, SPU 13.
Offsides – APU 5, SPU 1.
 
Records
Azusa Pacific 7-0-0
Seattle Pacific 1-3-1
 
Next SPU Men's Soccer Game
Western Washington at Seattle Pacific
Thursday, Oct. 3, 7:00 p.m. PDT
Interbay Stadium / Seattle, Wash.