SEATTLE – Seattle Pacific University men's soccer head coach
Kevin Sakuda announced the team's 2025 schedule on Wednesday, featuring nonconference matches in California, seven consecutive home matches in the middle of the season, and the first-ever Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships for men's soccer.
The Falcons open the season with four consecutive road matches against teams from the California Collegiate Athletic Association. It starts with a match against Stanislaus State on Sept. 4, followed by a meeting with Chico State on Sept. 6. The Falcons finish their time in California with matches against Cal State LA on Sept. 11 and Dominguez Hills on Sept. 13.
SPU's first home match of the 2025 season is on Sept. 18 when they host Westminster. Regis visits Interbay Soccer Stadium on Sept. 20. The Falcons play rare Wednesday and Friday matches on Sept. 24 and Sept. 26. They'll host Dallas Baptist and St. Edward's on those dates.
"We're looking forward to the 2025 season," head coach
Kevin Sakuda said. "Our nonconference schedule will test us early with two back-to-back trips to California to face 4 of the top schools in the CCAA. Those games will demand our best right out of the gate. We return home to face Westminster and Regis. We finish nonconference with our first opportunity in a few years to face teams from the Lone Star Conference. It's a great chance to see where we stand and where we need to grow."
The Falcons open GNAC play amid seven consecutive home matches. Northwest Nazarene is the conference-opening match on Oct. 4. Oct. 9 features a match against Simon Fraser at 5:00 p.m. The Falcons welcome Western Washington to Seattle for a showdown on Oct. 11 at 7:00 p.m.
SPU is on the road for four straight matches during the last half of October. They return to Seattle for their final home weekend of the regular season on Oct. 30 and Nov. 1. The Falcons play Western Oregon on Oct. 30th at 6:00 p.m. Then on Nov. 1, SPU hosts Saint Martin's at 6:00 p.m. The Falcons will celebrate their seniors before their match against the Saints.
The regular season finale is a road game against the Nighthawks. This year, the GNAC has introduced a men's soccer tournament. The top three teams from the conference standings will qualify for the GNAC Championships. The top seed earns a bye in the first round to advance to the championship game. The winner of the GNAC Championships receives the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
"Once we hit GNAC play, every game becomes a battle," Sakuda said. "The conference is full of quality sides that know each other well, and every game is a difficult challenge."
SPU enters the 2025 season after a solid 2024 campaign. The Falcons finished the year 8-6-4, with a 5-4-3 record in GNAC play. They finished the year by winning their final two matches of the season and tied for third in the GNAC standings.
The Falcons put seven players on the 2024 GNAC All-Conference team.
Connor Tollan returns after a breakout season in 2024. He scored five goals and led the GNAC in assists with eight this season. He finished the year with 18 points. Tollan's production led to a First Team All-GNAC selection.
Diego Pena-Salgado and
JJ Diaz return after All-Conference recognition. Pena-Salgado appeared in 12 matches, scored twice, and dished out an assist. His season earned a Second Team All-GNAC selection. Diaz is back after scoring three goals, dishing out three assists, and totaling nine points in 2024. He was a GNAC Honorable Mention selection.
In the classroom, the Falcons put 12 players on the GNAC All-Academic team last season. Tollan,
Jackson Goode,
Isaac Ketcham, and
Christopher Soto were selected as College Sports Communicators Academic All-District team members.
"Our expectations for this group are high," Sakuda added. "We return a strong core, and we've added players who raise the level of the team. We believe in the group and if we stay connected and buy into putting the team first, we have the potential to do something special."
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