Tuesday, October 17, 2017

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
Matteo Polisi, Simon Fraser
M • 5-10 • Freshman • Coquitlam, B.C.Polisi scored both game-winning goals for Simon Fraser in shutouts of Concordia and Western Washington. He notched the game-winner against the Cavaliers on Thursday in the 29th minute and added an assist on Riley Pang’s goal in the 67th minute. Polisi then scored a game-winner with less than two minutes left in the second overtime for the Clan’s 1-0 win over the Vikings on Saturday.

Also Nominated: Edwin Quiroz (Northwest Nazarene), Brandon Madsen (Saint Martin’s), Alex Meija (Seattle Pacific), Anthony Dean (Western Washington).

DEFENSE
Magnus, Kristensen
D • 6-3 • Senior • Stavanger, Norway
Kristensen keyed a Simon Fraser defense that allowed no goals and just one shot on goal in two matches as the Clan scored a 3-0 shutout of Concordia on Thursday and a 1-0 double-overtime victory over Western Washington on Saturday.

Also Nominated: Christian Caro (Saint Martin’s), Colton Ronk (Western Washington).

AROUND THE GNAC
CONCORDIA
LAST WEEK: Lost 3-0 at Simon Fraser. Won 3-0 vs. Saint Martin's.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 19 vs. Montana State Billings, 4 p.m. Oct. 21 vs. Northwest Nazarene, 7 p.m.
• On Thursday, Concordia fell 3-0 at Simon Fraser in a GNAC rematch that initially saw the Cavs hand SFU its first defeat of the year on Sept. 28.
• In their match on Saturday, Concordia scored three goals in the first six minutes of the second half to blank Saint Martin’s 3-0 at home. Nick Evans, Alec Dunkeld and Santeri Ihamoutila each tallied goals while Benoit Bouillant recorded his first shutout of the season.
• Concordia came out on fire in the second half when Evans gave the hosts a 1-0 lead for his second goal of the season in the 48th minute. Not even a minute later, the Cavaliers doubled their lead when Dunkeld connected on a ball from Matthew Cunningham for his first goal of the season.
• Noah Swigart leads the Cavs with three goals this season. Evans owns a team-high three assists and seven points. Michael Hatch has started all 12 games this season, logging a team-high 1,114 minutes. In 10 appearances, Bouillant has recorded 41 saves.
• Concordia continues its three-match homestand this Thursday as they take on Montana State Billings. In their previous meeting on Sept. 23 in Billings, the Yellowjackets defeated the Cavs 3-1.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
LAST WEEK: Lost 2-0 at Western Washington. Lost 3-1 at Northwest Nazarene.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 19 at Concordia, 4 p.m. Oct. 21 at Seattle Pacific, 4:30 p.m.
•  Montana State Billings fell to Western Washington 2-0 Thursday night at Harrington Field.
• The ‘Jackets pressured early and held the upper hand in the opening half, outshooting WWU 5-1. Four of those opportunities were on frame.
• Goalkeeper Tom Lohmann finished the game with a pair of saves for the ‘Jackets while Guillaume Kremer led the team with three shots including two on target.
•  On Saturday, Northwest Nazarene stifled MSUB 3-1 as the Nighthawks scored twice in the opening three minutes.
• Kremer scored his fifth goal of the season with a 25-yard free kick with nine minutes left in the match.
• Kremer is tied for first on the Yellowjackets with five goals. He ranks 48th in Division II with 3.50 shots per match.
•  The Yellowjackets conclude their five-match road trip this week with contests at Concordia and Seattle Pacific.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
LAST WEEK: Won 3-1 vs. Montana State Billings.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 19 at Seattle Pacific, 4:30 p.m. Oct. 21 at Concordia, 7 p.m.
• Northwest Nazarene scored two goals in the opening 2:30 to defeat Montana State Billings 3-1 last Saturday.
• Edwin Quiroz scored an unassisted goal just 26 seconds into the match after netting his strike from 15 yards out. Jonathan Bryant found himself on the scoresheet just two minutes later when he fired a 20-yard effort to double the Nighthawks’ advantage.
• Northwest Nazarene added an insurance goal in the 77th minute when Jake Levine received a Quiroz pass and finished his breakaway opportunity.
• Jacob Hillyer had one save for the Nighthawks. Hillyer has made 29 saves this season and owns a .725 save percentage.
• In five starts this season, Levine is tied for first on the team with three goals. Michael Bryant is the other Nighthawk with three goals.
• The win against MSUB halted a three-game winless skid for NNU.
• Northwest Nazarene will return to action next weekend, playing at Seattle Pacific on Thursday and Concordia on Saturday.

SAINT MARTIN'S
LAST WEEK: Lost 5-3 vs. Seattle Pacific. Lost 3-0 at Concordia.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 19 vs. Western Washington, 1 p.m. Oct. 21 vs. Simon Fraser, 2 p.m.
• Two early goals for Brandon Madsen and an equalizer from Kyle Witzel in the second half was not enough as Saint Martin’s fell 5-3 to Seattle Pacific at home on Thursday.
• Madsen started the affair with a penalty goal kick in the 15th minute after a hand-ball was called in Seattle Pacific’s box. Madsen struck again for the Saints less than two minutes later on a cross from Cayman John. Madsen increased his goal count to nine, including four in the last two matches. In the Saints’ three home matches this season, Madsen has scored five of the six goals.
• Madsen is tied for first in the GNAC and ranks tied for 34th in Division II with nine goals.
• Despite the Saints taking 10 more shots and five more corner kicks than Concordia, the Cavs walked away with a 3-0 victory Saturday at Tuominen Yard.
• Netminder Griffin Small played all 90 minutes, making a total of five saves on nine shots faced.
• Small leads the GNAC with 46 saves this season and ranks 32nd in Division II with 5.20 saves per match.
• The Saints return home for four of their final five matches, starting with Western Washington this Thursday.

SEATTLE PACIFIC 
LAST WEEK: Won 5-3 at Saint Martin's.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 19 vs. Northwest Nazarene, 4:30 p.m. Oct. 21 vs. Montana State Billings, 4:30 p.m.
• In their 5-3 win against Saint Martin’s last week, Alex Mejia recorded an assist and scored the final goal in Seattle Pacific’s come-from-behind victory in Lacey, Wash.
• Down 2-0 to start the game, the Falcons cut the deficit just three seconds before halftime on a penalty kick by Gabe Kellum.
• Seattle Pacific evened the score less than five minutes after intermission when Mejia set up Gabriel Weber for the team’s second goal. The Falcons gained a 3-2 lead on a Jacob Bohl tally two minutes later for his first collegiate goal.
• Kellum and Weber remained tied for team-high scoring tallies, each with five goals this season.
• The eight goals marked the highest combined scoring total in an SPU men’s soccer game since Oct. 6, 2012, when the same two teams put up the exact same score.
• Seattle Pacific leads the GNAC and ranks 7th in Division II with 2.42 assists per match.
• The SPU men host Northwest Nazarene next Thursday to begin a four-game homestand at Interbay Stadium.

No. 13 SIMON FRASER
LAST WEEK: Won 3-0 vs. Concordia. Won 1-0 at Western Washington.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 21 at Saint Martin's, 2 p.m.
• Simon Fraser took on Concordia in a GNAC rematch Thursday night, coming out as 3-0 victors. In their previous matchup on Sept. 28, the Cavs knocked off SFU to give the Clan its first loss of the season.
• Two days later, Matteo Polisi netted the golden goal in the Clan’s 1-0 double-overtime win against Western Washington at Harrington field.
• With fewer than two minutes left in the second overtime, forward Connor Glennon headed a shot toward goal, forcing WWU goalkeeper Tyler Visten to make a diving save. The shot deflected off Visten’s gloves to a charging Polisi, who finished from close range for his eighth goal of the season.
• The Clan swept this week’s GNAC Men’s Soccer Players of the Week awards, as Polisi was awarded the offensive honor while Magnus Kristensen earned the defensive accolade. The Clan outscored its opponents 4-0 this week.
• The Clan is ranked No. 13 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Division II Coaches Poll.
• Polisi moves into second place in the GNAC with 19 points.
• Simon Fraser is ranked 11th in Division II with a 0.63 goals against average. The Clan has recorded a league-leading six shutouts this season. Clan netminder Miguel Hof ranks 10th in Division II with 0.60 goals allowed per match.
• The Clan’s lone match this week comes at Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
LAST WEEK: Won 2-0 vs. Montana State Billings. Lost 1-0 vs. Simon Fraser.
THIS WEEK: Oct. 19 at Saint Martin's, 1 p.m.
• Freshman Drew Farnsworth broke a scoreless tie in the 81st minute and later assisted Anthony Dean to lead Western Washington to a 2-0 home win at Montana State Billings.
• The Vikings doubled its advantage in the 90th minute when Farnsworth sent a low cross to Dean, who finished from five yards out to tally his league-leading ninth goal of the season.
• Simon Fraser scored the golden goal in double overtime to lift No. 13 Simon Fraser to a 1-0 victory at Western Washington on Saturday night.
• The Vikings lost for the first time since Sept. 2, ending their nine-game unbeaten streak. All three WWU losses this season have come in overtime. The loss moves them into a first-place tie with SFU at 16 points.
• The Vikings were held scoreless for only the second time during the season and had their streak of three consecutive shutouts snapped.
• Saturday’s contest marked the seventh time that Western Washington has gone into overtime this season. The Vikings suffered its first conference loss since 2016.
• Western Washington begins a four-game road trip on Thursday at Saint Martin’s.