THIS WEEK'S WOMEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14
(#8) Seattle Pacific at Central Washington
7:00.m. PDT, Tomlinson Stadium, Ellensburg, Wash.
       • Webcast:  https://www.youtube.com/c/cwuathletics
       • LiveStats:  https://wildcatsports.com/sidearmstats/wsoc/summary
 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16
(#8) Seattle Pacific at Montana State Billings
12:00 p.m. PDT (1:00 pm. MDT), Yellowjacket Soccer Field, Billings, Mont.
       • Webcast & LiveStats:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUSfH5CDgCJHjkOa0-znevg
       • LiveStats:  https://msubsports.com/sidearmstats/wsoc/summary
 
The longest women's soccer road stretch of the season starts for eighth-ranked Seattle Pacific, which plays twice away from home this week to begin a four-game trip. The Falcons (8-1-0, 5-1-0 GNAC), tied for first place atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings, travel to Ellensburg on Thursday Oct. 14 for a clash with Central Washington. Kick-off is 7:00 p.m. at Tomlinson Stadium. The Wildcats (2-8-0, 1-5-0) lost the last five meetings with SPU. On Saturday Oct. 16 the Falcons visit Montana State Billings for a game at noon Pacific Time (1:00 p.m. MDT). That is a rematch of a Sept. 23 game in Seattle that the Falcons won 5-0. The Yellowjackets (5-4-2, 2-3-1) are winless in their last 10 meetings with SPU. The GNAC season and NCAA Division II Tournament that were cancelled last year will be contested this fall. SPU seeks a return to the NCAA playoffs for the first time since 2018 after narrowly missing a berth in 2019 and no playoffs. in 2020.
 
Explosive Offense
The Falcons are outscoring opponents by a 23-2 margin, having tallied multiple goals in all but two games. SPU tops the GNAC in goals (23), goal average (2.56 per game), assists (25) and points per game (7.89). The Falcons boast multi-goal games by three individuals, with braces from Lauren Forster (Sept. 23), AJ DePinto (Sept. 25) and Makena Rietz (Oct. 2). Those three SPU players each have four goals and are tied atop the GNAC leaderboard in that category along with two players from other schools. SPU's Sophia Chilczuk (5) and Claire Neder (4) rank one-two among GNAC assist leaders.
 
Falcons Fast Facts
• The Falcons have conceded just 15 corner kicks (1.6 per game) while earning 59 themselves (6.6).
 
• SPU ranks No. 2 nationally in goals against average (0.22) while topping the GNAC in goals allowed (2) and shutouts (7). The defense has not allowed a goal in the last 274-minutes, 55-seconds.
 
• Sophia Chilczuk ranks 5th in SPU career goals (32), 6th in total points (86) and 9th in assists (22).
 
 

Team & Player of the Week
Two home shutouts, including a 1-0 overtime win over then sixth-ranked Western Washington, vaulted SPU into a first-place tie and reaped GNAC Team of the Week honors. Falcons goalkeeper Riley Travis was honored as the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week after compiling seven saves, two clean sheets and making a game-saving stop of a WWU penalty kick 11 seconds into overtime. The Falcons started the week Thursday (Oct. 7) with a 2-0 victory over Simon Fraser behind goals from Chloe Gelhaus and Jacqueline Blakeley. The week ended with a 95th-minute golden goal from Claire Neder on Saturday (Oct. 9) that delivered the win over Western.
 
2021 Season Preview
Seattle Pacific was picked first in the preseason GNAC coaches poll, and for good reason. Coach Arby Busey returns all 11 starters from last season's squad that outscored opponents 39-7. The Falcons forged an 8-0-1 record in the shortened 2020-21 campaign and were ranked No. 5 in the final national poll. There was no conference schedule nor NCAA playoffs last season. Ten different Falcons netted a goal and all of them return this fall. The potent offense featured the 10-goal, eight-assist effort of senior forward Sophia Chilczuk, who led the nation in assists per game (1.0) and ranked fourth in goals average (1.25). Senior Claire Neder contributed eight goals and five assists while junior Chloe Gellhaus scored six times. The dynamic defense posted six clean sheets.
 
This Week's Opponents
Central Washington (2-8-0, 1-5-0 GNAC) -- The Wildcats beat Saint Martin's 4-1 at home on Saturday to halt an eight-game losing skid. Assistant Emmy Koflanovich has been overseeing the CWU program since 22nd-year coach Michael Farrand resigned three games into this season, on Sept. 14. Sydney Lowe tops the team with three goals. A trio of goalkeepers combined for a 3.30 goals against average. The Falcons won the last five meetings to gain a 28-7-4 lead in the all-time series. SPU won last season's first matchup 5-2 on May 1, 2021 in Seattle behind two goals apiece from Sophie Beadle and Chloe Gellhaus. The May 15 rematch in Ellensburg was cancelled.
 
Montana State Billings (5-4-2, 2-3-1 GNAC) -- The Yellowjackets stopped a three-game winless streak with Saturday's 2-1 overtime win over Simon Fraser on a golden goal by Sydney Torres. Liberty Palmer and Torres share team-high honors with three goals apiece. The goalkeeping tandem of Clare Keenan and Tuva Sallvin combined for three shutouts and a 1.39 goals against average. The Falcons own a 23-4-2 series lead, outscoring MSUB 67-16 all-time. SPU posted an 8-0-2 record, and was victorious in the last five meetings, since the Yellowjackets last win on Sept. 27, 2014 in Billings. The Falcons were 5-0 victors on Sept. 23 in Seattle.
 
 

Coach Busey
Arby Busey is in his 16th year on the Seattle Pacific staff and his seventh as head coach. In the abbreviated 2020-21 season, he directed the Falcons to an 8-0-1 record and No. 5 final ranking. Busey has a 65-32-9 record at SPU, a mark 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 in 2018. From his assistant post from 2006-14, Busey helped the Falcons to an impressive 95-30-12 record and playoff appearances each season. SPU won the 2008 NCAA Division II championship and reached the 2007 national semifinals during his tenure. He is a 1993 graduate of Villanova and was the Idaho head coach from 2002-04 where he had an 8-40-7 record.
 
Next Week
The SPU women remain on the road to finish a four-game trip. They visit Western Washington on Oct. 21 at 7:00 p.m. and Simon Fraser on Oct. 23 at 2:00 p.m. The next home game at Interbay Stadium is Oct. 28 at 7:00 p.m. versus Saint Martin's.