THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 30
(#7) Seattle Pacific at Western Oregon
2:00 p.m. PDT, WOU Soccer Field, Monmouth, Ore.
       • Webcast:  https://www.youtube.com/wouwolves
       • LiveStats:  https://wouwolves.com/sidearmstats/wsoc/summary
 
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2
(#7) Seattle Pacific at Saint Martin's
1:00.m. PDT, Saints Field, Lacey, Wash.
       • Webcast:  https://www.youtube.com/c/SMUAthleticsYT
       • LiveStats:  https://smusaints.com/sidearmstats/wsoc/summary
 
Undefeated and unscored upon for the last nine halves, seventh-ranked Seattle Pacific embarks on its first Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's soccer road trip. The first-place Falcons (5-0-0, 2-0-0) travel to Monmouth for a matchup with Western Oregon on Thursday, Sept. 30 at 2:00 p.m. SPU lost just one of the last 36 matchups with the Wolves (1-5-0, 0-2-0). On Saturday, Oct. 2 the Falcons take the short drive south to Lacey for a game at Saint Martin's. SPU has never lost in 26 all-time meetings with the Saints (2-4-0, 1-1-0). The GNAC season and NCAA Division II Tournament that were cancelled last year will be contested this fall. SPU seeks a return to the NCAAs for the first time since 2018 after narrowly missing a berth in 2019 and no playoffs last season.
 
 

Offensive Outburst
The Falcons 11 goals last week mark their finest two-game scoring spree since a similar 11-goal outburst Sept. 8 & 11, 2011. Their highest ever consecutive-game total was 14, achieved twice; on Oct. 29 & Nov. 1, 2008 and Oct. 19 & 26, 2002 versus GNAC opponents Western Oregon (5-1) and Northwest Nazarene (9-0). After conceding a score in the 37th minute of the 2021 season opener at Chico State on Sept. 11, the SPU offense has reeled off 17 unanswered goals. The Falcons boast multi-goal games by two individuals, with braces by Lauren Forster (Sept. 23) and AJ DePinto (Sept. 25).
 
Falcons Fast Facts
• Winner of its first five games, SPU has not opened with six wins since the 2009 squad won its first 10.
 
• The SPU defense has not surrendered a goal since the 37th minute of the Sept. 11 season opener at Chico State, compiling an active 413-minute, 35-second scoreless streak.
 
• SPU is undefeated in its last 14 outings (entire 2021 calendar year) and boasts an 8-game win streak.
 
Players of the Week
Mariah Alexander (Defensive) and Lauren Forster (Offensive), who helped engineer two lopsided, shutout home triumphs for SPU, received the GNAC women's soccer Player of the Week awards on Monday. A senior central defender, Alexander scored a goal and anchored a unit that blanked both conference opponents. She helped limited Montana State Billings (Sept. 23) to four shots in a 5-0 victory. Alexander surged forward to score on a 14-yard finish in the 22nd minute with her sixth career goal. Another clean sheet followed in a 6-0 triumph over Northwest Nazarene (Sept. 25). Forster came off the bench to compile three goals last week on only four shot attempts. She netted back-to-back second-half scores less than four minutes apart, at 41:17 and 44:33, in the win over Billings. In the rout of NNU, she scored in the 34th minute. The sophomore forward entered last week having scored one career goal and now has four.
    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
Western Oregon (1-5-0, 0-2-0) -- The Wolves have only one win, 1-0 at home versus Humboldt State (Sept. 12), but three of their losses came by just one goal. In the last outing, WOU was tied with Western Washington before conceding an 85th-minute goal in a 2-1 setback. Jada Foster paces the attack with two goals. Goalkeepers Darlen Walton and Emily Wheeler combined for one clean sheet and a 1.50 goals against average. The Wolves won 2-0 on Oct. 5, 2019 in Monmouth for their first win over SPU since 2002, halting a 31-game series winless streak (0-30-1). The Falcons won the last four encounters to increase their all-time series lead to 35-3-1.
 
Saint Martin's (2-4-0, 1-1-0) -- The Saints had a two-game winning streak snapped with a 2-1 loss at Simon Fraser in their last outing (Sept. 25). Kiersten Madsen tops the team with two goals. The goalkeeping tandem of Ali Campigotto and Sophie Mendoza combined for two shutouts and a 1.00 goals against average. The Falcons won all 26 previous meetings versus Saint Martin's, including a 4-0 home win (April 1) and 4-0 road win (April 29) during the 2020-21 spring season.
 
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 62-31-9 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 Seattle Pacific women return home to host their rivals to the north. Simon Fraser invades Interbay Stadium on Oct. 7 at 4:30 p.m. before Western Washington visits on Oct. 9 for a 7:00 p.m. clash.