THIS WEEK'S WOMEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7
Simon Fraser at (#25) Seattle Pacific
4:30 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 9
(#6) Western Washington at (#25) Seattle Pacific
7:00 p.m. PDT, Interbay Stadium, Seattle, Wash.
 
     • Webcast for both games:  https://www.youtube.com/user/SPUsports
     • LiveStats for both games:  https://spufalcons.comsidearmstats/wsoc/
     • Buy Tickets in Advance:  https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/spufalcons/6750
 
With a four-game road trip looming next week, 25th-ranked Seattle Pacific seeks to succeed in a two-game women's soccer homestand this week at Interbay Stadium. The Falcons (6-1-0, 3-1-0 GNAC) host a pair of teams at the top of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference table beginning on Thursday, Oct. 7 at 4:30 p.m. versus a Simon Fraser team that shares second place with them. Simon Fraser (2-4-1 3-1-0) won its last three games, including a Sept. 30 home forfeit with Northwest Nazarene that counts as a GNAC win, but doesn't go on their overall record. On Saturday, Oct. 9, league-leading and sixth-ranked Western Washington (7-0-2, 4-0-0) visits for a 7:00 p.m. clash. They each have an NCAA Division II title to their credit, SPU in 2008 and Western in 2016. SPU won the most recent encounter, 4-1, on May 12, 2021 in Seattle to halt a 21-game winless skid versus the Vikings. 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 being contested last season.
 

Welcome Back to Interbay
Fans are welcome to attend games in person at Interbay Stadium. Mask wearing is mandatory at all times and spectators are encouraged to social distance when possible. Get your SPU soccer tickets in advance by purchasing them online at:  https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/spufalcons/6750   Tickets for SPU soccer games can also be purchased on game day at Interbay Stadium (3027 17th Ave. W., Seattle 98119). Ticket windows open one hour prior to kickoff. All seats are general admission and priced at $10 for adults and $7 for students and senior citizens. SPU students and staff are admitted free. Groups or teams of 10 or more may qualify for reduced ticket rates by calling (206) 281-2085 in advance.
 
Explosive Offense
The Falcons are outscoring opponents by a 20-2 margin, having tallied multiple goals in all but last Thursday's (Sept. 30) 1-0 overtime loss at Western Oregon. SPU tops the GNAC in goals (20), goal average (2.86 per game), assists (20) and points per game (8.56). 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 Western Washington's Tera Ziemer.
 
Falcons Fast Facts
• The SPU defense leads the GNAC with a 0.28 goals against average and is tied for first with 5 shutouts.
 
• The Falcons went 509-minutes, 32-seconds without surrendering a goal, from Sept. 11 to Sept. 30.
 
• Sophia Chilczuk ranks 5th in SPU career goals (32), 6th in total points (86) and 9th in assists (22).
 
• The 1-0 overtime loss at Western Oregon (Sept. 30) was SPU's first setback in the 2021 calendar year (13-0-1), ending a 14-game unbeaten streak and halting a run of 17 unanswered goals by the Falcons.
 
Recent Recap
SPU drew a split on last week's GNAC road trip, tasting defeat and begin shut out for the first time in a 1-0 overtime loss at Western Oregon (Sept. 30). Despite a 16-14 shot edge, the Falcons fell on a 96th-minute golden goal. They rebounded with a trio of second-half goals, two of them by Makena Rietz, in a 3-0 victory at Western Oregon (Oct. 2). Lauren Forster also scored for SPU and the defense registered its fifth clean sheet.
 
 

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
Simon Fraser (2-4-1, 3-1-0 GNAC) -- Simon Fraser, from Burnaby, B.C., was formerly called the Clan but does not currently have a nickname while deciding on a new moniker. Winners of its last two outings on the field, SFU picked up a third GNAC win due to a Sept. 30 forfeit by Northwest Nazarene, which was unable to visit Canada due to a shortage of available players. Giuliana Zaurini and Kate Cartier lead Simon Fraser with two goals apiece. Goalkeeper Kelsey Fisher compiled a 1.14 goals against average. Seattle Pacific won the last two encounters to claim a 14-1-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Falcons won the last matchup 4-0 on Oct. 12, 2019 in Seattle.
 
#6 Western Washington (7-0-2, 4-0-0 GNAC) -- The sixth-ranked Vikings are unbeaten and sit atop the GNAC standings. They are outscoring opponents by a 17-4 margin paced by the four goals of Tera Ziemer. Goalkeeper Natalie Dierickx has four shoutouts and a 0.45 goals against average. Travis Connell, a four-year SPU men's soccer letterman (1991-95), is in his 18th year and owns WWU's all-time mark with 272 coaching wins. WWU leads the all-time series 21-19-7, but had a 21-game undefeated streak (17-0-4) halted in the last meeting. The Falcons were 4-1 victors on May 12, 2021 in Seattle behind two goals from Claire Neder, getting their first win over WWU since Oct. 27, 2012. Last season's first meeting, on April 24, was a 4-4 draw that snapped the Vikings string of 13th consecutive wins over SPU. The Falcons had leads of 2-0 and 4-3 before Western's Zola Carbone forged a tie with 16 seconds left in regulation.
 
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 63-32-9 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.
 
Upcoming Action
The Seattle Pacific women are away from home the next two weeks on a four-game road trip. They visit Central Washington (Oct. 14), Montana State Billings (Oct. 16) before rematches with Western Washington (Oct. 21) and Simon Fraser (Oct. 23).