THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 11
(#22) Seattle Pacific at Saint Martin's
2:00 p.m. PST, Regional Athletic Complex; Olympia, Wash.
       • No Webcast
       • LiveStats:  https://smusaints.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13
(#22) Seattle Pacific at Northwest Nazarene
1:00 p.m. PST (2:00 p.m. MT), NNU Soccer Field; Nampa, Idaho
       • Webcast:  https://youtu.be/IQP6k-qMT5s
       • LiveStats:  https://nnusports.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary
 
The 22nd-ranked Seattle Pacific men's soccer squad seeks to secure the 2021 Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship as the regular season closes with its final two games this week. The Falcons (11-2-2 5-1-2 GNAC) can secure at least a shared title with one win or can claim the crown outright by picking up four points. SPU visits Saint Martin's on Thursday, Nov. 11. Kick-off is 2:00 p.m. at the Regional Athletic Complex in Olympia, Washington. SPU won 21 of the last 23 meetings with the Saints (3-12-0, 2-6-0). On Saturday, Nov. 13 the Falcons conclude the regular season with a 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time (2 p.m. Mountain) matchup against Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, Idaho. They won the last four matchups versus the Nighthawks (6-8-0, 3-5-0).
 
Title Talk
The Falcons have a 5-1-2 league ledger and a 17-point total that ties them for first place, with a game-in-hand over Western Washington (5-2-2). Both are two points free of Simon Fraser (5-4-0). SPU can secure at least a co-championship with a win at Saint Martin's on Thursday as the league does not perform a tiebreaker to determine the conference title. A tiebreaker format will, however, go in effect to determine the GNAC's automatic berth into the NCAA Division II Tournament and SPU wins that by virtue of a win in the first head-to-head meeting with WWU. No tiebreaker will be needed if the Falcons pick up at least four points this week. The SPU men have won three GNAC titles and the last one came in 2015, following a similar 2014 championship campaign.
 
Playoff Pursuit
The GNAC champion receives an automatic invitation to the NCAA Division II Tournament that begins Nov. 18. SPU is vying for its 36th playoff appearance and it first since 2015. No NCAA Tournament was conducted last season due to the pandemic.
 
 

Magnificent Mejia
SPU senior Alex Mejia has 14 goals to rank No. 9 nationally and lead the GNAC. That is the highest single-season scoring output by a Falcon since Tyler Schultz netted 16 goals in 2011. Mejia notched at least one goal in 11 of his 15 outings this season. The senior forward registered the first hat trick by a Falcon since 2018 with three goals versus Saint Martin's on Oct. 9. He has produced 24 career goals.
 
Throw-Ins
• SPU reached the 11-win mark for the first time since 2017 (11-5-1), the most wins since 2015 (14-1-4)
 
• Alex Mejia leads the GNAC with 14 goals while Alden Massey ranks fourth with 6 scores
 
• The Falcons lead the league with 36 goals and no other team has more than 25
 
• Junior midfielder Tyler Speer is the GNAC's second-ranked playmaker with 5 assists to his credit
 
• SPU tallied the first goal in 10 of 15 games this season with an 8-1-1 record in those outings
 
• Titus Grant and Alex Mejia are tied for the GNAC game-winning goals leadership with 3 apiece
 
• On defense, SPU allows the fewest goals per game in the GNAC at 1.13 with Simon Fraser 2nd at 1.27
 
Ranking Report
The Falcons fell four spots, to No. 22, in this week's national rankings. They were not listed in the preseason poll and rose as high as No. 7, on Oct. 12.
 
Preseason Poll Projection
Seattle Pacific, led by first-year coach Kevin Sakuda, was projected for a third-place finish by the GNAC preseason poll. The Falcons forged a 3-2-1 record in the abbreviated, pandemic-altered 2020-21 campaign that was conducted during the spring. Ten starters returned from last season, including seven of the eight goal scorers. 
 
This Week's Opponents
Saint Martin's (3-12-0, 2-6-0 GNAC) -- The Saints 2-1 decision versus NNU on Saturday was their second win in the last 12 outings. Jason Fairhurst, the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week with both goals in that game, paces the attack with seven scores. Primary goalkeeper Hunter Askland has a 3.24 goals against average. SPU lost just twice in the last 23 encounters with the Saints and leads the all-time series 24-5-1. The Falcons were 6-0 victors in this season's first meeting, on Oct. 9 in Seattle, behind a hat trick from Alex Mejia and two assists from Tyler Speer.
 
Northwest Nazarene (6-8-0, 3-5-0 GNAC) -- The Nighthawks started conference play with a 3-1-0 record before losing their last four games. Sebastian Cotrau and Lukas Juodkunaitis share team-high scoring honors with four goals apiece. Goalkeeper Sawyer Price posted three shutouts and a 1.62 goals against average. The Falcons lead the series 20-3-6, including wins in the last four encounters. SPU won 2-1 on Oct. 7 in Seattle.
 
Meet the Interim Coach
 

Kevin Sakuda is in his inaugural season at the helm, acting as the men's interim head coach after serving six seasons as the SPU women's assistant coach. He had a nine-year professional playing career, including six seasons with the USL version of the Seattle Sounders. A product of Mission San Jose (Calif.) High School, Sakuda lettered four years on the Duke University squad before graduating in 2002 with a psychology degree. He was selected by San Jose in the third round of the 2002 MLS SuperDraft, the 39th pick overall. Sakuda made 148 appearances as a defender with the USL from 2003-08. He played with the Montreal Impact in 2009 and the Austin Aztex in 2009-10. He also played in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 2002-05 with the San Diego Sockers. Sakuda is the fourth head coach in the 54-year history of SPU men's soccer. He replaced Mark Collings, who compiled a 129-68-32 record in 13 seasons (2008-20) before departing to become an assistant at the University of Washington. Cliff McCrath coached the Falcons to a 512-190-87 mark over 38 seasons (1970-2007) and Arnie Aizstrauts was 1-14-1 from 1968-69.
 
2020-21 Season Abbreviated
The Falcons completed the unique 2021 spring season with a 3-2-1 record. Due to the pandemic, the traditional 2020 fall season was vacated. Results and statistics from the spring season are official and count for record purposes, but there were no season-ending NCAA playoffs and the GNAC did not conduct a league schedule.