PORTLAND, Ore. – The Great Northwest Athletic Conference announced its weekly awards on Monday afternoon, with Seattle Pacific University men's soccer goalkeeper
Brian Lanier being named as the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week.
"Brian was fantastic last week," head coach
Kevin Sakuda said. "His presence and maturity in the back have been so valuable to the team as we opened the season with two very tough road trips. Two clean sheets against two top teams is massive for our team. He came up big when we needed him."
Lanier anchored the SPU defense in two shutout performances last weekend. The Falcons battled second-ranked Cal State LA to a 0-0 draw last Thursday night. Lanier faced 13 shots from the Golden Eagles and made three saves. He notched his first career shutout for the Falcons in that match.
Last Saturday, Lanier had another clean sheet for SPU. The Falcons withstood an offensive attack from Cal State Dominguez Hills and earned another 0-0 draw. The Toros launched 15 shots and had five corner kicks in last Saturday's match. Still, Lanier and the Falcons stood tall, as the SPU keeper made five saves to pick up his second consecutive shutout.
Opponents are averaging less than a goal per game (.75) against the Falcons through the first two weeks of the season. That's the second-best in the conference. Lanier ranks second in the conference with three goals allowed early on in 2025. He leads the conference with 21 saves and an .875 save percentage this season.
The Falcons are back in Seattle to host a pair of nonconference matches this week. SPU welcomes Westminster on Thursday at 7:00 p.m., followed by a match against Regis on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
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