SEATTLE – After finishing among the best women's soccer teams in the country in 2021, the Seattle Pacific Falcons will be testing themselves against some of the best to start 2022.
 
SPU, ranked No. 5 in the United Soccer Coaches preseason poll, will open its new season facing two of the top four squads from the California Collegiate Athletic Association, then will take on a pair of NCAA Tournament qualifiers before heading into the Great Northwest Athletic Conference portion of their schedule.
 
 

"Our schedule this fall will provide us with a lot of challenges, and we are excited about taking those on together," said head coach Arby Busey, whose team is coming off a conference championship, an NCAA West Region championship, and a spot in the Elite Eight, finishing with a 19-2-1 overall record. "It's a great slate of non-conference games that will certainly help us prepare for the gauntlet of games we'll play within the GNAC.".
 
The Falcons do get the advantage of starting on their Interbay Stadium home turf, opening against San Francisco State on Thursday, Sept. 1 at 7:00 p.m., then playing Chico State on Saturday the 3rd at 4:00 p.m. The contest against Chico will be the opener of a women's / men's doubleheader.
 
San Francisco State placed fourth in the CCAA last fall, and Chico State was second.
 
Seattle Pacific then flies off to Utah for a Labor Day game against Westminster College on Sept. 5. The Griffins reached the NCAA Tournament last season, going overtime against Angelo State in the first round before falling, 3-2.
 
The non-conference finale is back at Interbay against Colorado Mines on Friday, Sept. 9, at 7:00 p.m. The Orediggers are coming off a 13-win season that took them all the way to the second round of the NCAAs.
 
"San Francisco State was a great opponent for us last fall, and that program is on the rise," Busey said. "Chico State is a familiar foe to us, and we continue to include them on our schedule year after year due to the quality they put on the field each year. We also play two very good Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference teams (Westminster and Mines) teams who made the NCAA Tournament last fall."
 
GNAC play begins with a two-game road trip to Montana State Billings on Thursday, Sept. 15, at 2:00 p.m., and then on to Northwest Nazarene on Saturday the 17^th at noon. NNU was one of three conference teams to finish with double-digit victories last year, going 10-5-3.
 
Early October finds a four-game homestand on the docket, as Central Washington (Oct. 6), Montana State Billings (Oct. 8), Western Washington (Oct. 13) and Simon Fraser (Oct. 15) all visit Interbay.
 
The rivalry between the Falcons and Vikings from Bellingham turned in SPU's favor last year. Seattle Pacific won both regular-season games, prevailed again in the GNAC Tournament final, and ended with a 2-1 victory in the West Region championship game. The two teams also match up on Saturday, Oct. 1, at WWU.
 
A three-game road trip to Saint Martin's, Western Oregon, and Central precedes the regular-season finale on Saturday, Oct. 29 at home against Northwest Nazarene.
 
"The GNAC games will be challenging, as most every program has improved their roster since last fall," Busey said. "It is always enjoyable to get together with our GNAC opponents, as the familiarity with each other always makes for competitive games."
 
Of SPU's 10 home games, five of them – Sept. 3 and 15; Oct, 13, 15, and 29 – will be doubleheaders with the Falcon men.
 
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS ON THE CALENDAR
Although the regular season winds up in October, more soccer will be on its way to Interbay in early December as Seattle Pacific hosts the NCAA Division II Fall Sports Festival.
 
The women's and men's national soccer semifinals will take place on Thursday, Dec. 1. Both title games are set for Saturday, Dec. 3. Kickoff times have not yet been announced by the NCAA.
 
The other fall sports – volleyball, cross country, and women's field hockey – also will crown their champions in the Puget Sound area. Volleyball will take place in Brougham Pavilion on Dec. 1 (quarterfinals), Dec. 2 (semifinals) and Dec. 3 (finals).
 
Cross country is at Chambers Creek Regional Park in University Place, south of Tacoma, on Friday, Dec. 2.
 
Field hockey is set for Renton Memorial Stadium, 19 miles southeast of SPU, with semifinals on Dec. 1 and finals on Dec. 3.
 
 
2022 SEATTLE PACIFIC WOMEN'S SOCCER SCHEDULE
NON-CONFERENCE
Date                       Opponent                                          Time (Pacific)
Sept. 1       San Francisco State         7:00 p.m.
Sept. 3       Chico State                 4:00 p.m.
Sept. 5       at Westminster College      Noon
Sept. 9       Colorado Mines              7:00 p.m.
 
GREAT NORTHWEST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Date                       Opponent                                           Time (Pacific)
Sept. 15      at Montana State Billings   2:00 p.m.
Sept. 17      at Northwest Nazarene       Noon
Sept. 22      Western Oregon              7:00 p.m.
Sept. 24      Saint Martin's              7:00 p.m.
Sept. 29      at Simon Fraser             5:00 p.m.
Oct. 1        at Western Washington       4:00 p.m.
Oct. 6        Central Washington          7:00 p.m.
Oct. 8        Montana State Billings      2:00 p.m.
Oct. 13       Western Washington          7:00 p.m.
Oct. 15       Simon Fraser                7:00 p.m.
Oct. 20       at Saint Martin's           2:00 p.m.
Oct. 22       at Western Oregon           11:00 a.m.
Oct. 27       at Central Washington       3:00 p.m.
Oct. 29       Northwest Nazarene          4:00 p.m.
 
Home games in bold.