Wednesday, October 30, 2019

THIS WEEK'S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
Georg Cholewa, Western Washington
M • 5-11 • Junior • Leipzig, Germany

Cholewa recorded six points last week, scoring two goals and distributing two assists in two Viking wins. He assisted on both goals in Thursday’s 2-1 win at Montana State Billings then scored both goals, including the game-winner in the 77th minute, in Saturday’s 2-1 win at Simon Fraser.

Also Nominated: Nicholas Denley (Concordia), Ignacio Crespo (Montana State Billings), Sebastian Navarro (Saint Martin’s), Matteo Polisi (Simon Fraser).

DEFENSE
Teagan Eldridge, Western Washington
D • 5-11 • Sophomore • Enumclaw, Wash.

Eldridge played all 90 minutes in both matches last week, helping to limit Montana State Billings to one goal and four shots on goal. The Vikings then limited Simon Fraser to just one goal. Eldridge also assisted on the game-winner in Saturday’s 2-1 victory over the Clan.

Also Nominated: Kenneth Symmes (Concordia), Luca Battistotti (Montana State Billings), Marcello Polisi (Simon Fraser).

AROUND THE GNAC
CONCORDIA
• Concordia split its matches last week, losing 2-1 at home to Simon Fraser on Thursday then winning 4-3 in double overtime at Seattle Pacific on Saturday.

• Nicholas Denley scored the only goal for the Cavaliers in the 2-1 loss to the Simon Fraser. The Cavs had 11 shots and six shots on goal but the Clan escaped with the win with a goal in the 84th minute.

• Paul Seydel opened the scoring against Seattle Pacific, netting a goal in the eighth minute. Kyle Dearborn struck next in the 17th to put the Cavs up 2-0.

• Seattle Pacific scored three straight goals in the second half to take the lead, but Concordia’s Brendan Laun scored a goal with just seconds remaining to send the match to overtime.

• Denley scored the golden goal in the 103rd minute of the match to lift the Cavs over the Falcons. Denley is second in the GNAC and 28th in Division II with three game-winners. He is also tied for second in the conference with eight goals.

• Goalkeeper Kenneth Symmes made seven saves in the two matches.

• The Cavs ranked third in the GNAC and 46th in Division II with 1.67 assists per match. The Cavs are also third in the conference with 66 points, 12 goals and 58 saves.

• Concordia is now 7-5-0 (4-3-0 GNAC) on the season and hangs on to a fourth-place spot in the conference standings with 12 points. Up next, the Cavs will hit the road again, traveling to Montana State Billings on Thursday and Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings dropped a 2-1 match at home to Western Washington on Thursday before topping Northwest Nazarene, 1-0, on Saturday.

• Bryan Maxwell put the Yellowjackets on the board in the 74th minute of the 2-1 loss to the Vikings on Thursday. The Yellowjackets had just four shots on goal in the match.

• Ignacio Crespo was the hero in the Yellowjackets’ 1-0 victory over the Nighthawks on Saturday, netting the only goal of the match in the 73rd minute. The Yellowjackets put up 11 shots and seven shots on goal and limited the Nighthawks to just one shot on goal.

• Goalkeeper Jessy Martin made five saves in the two matches. He tops the GNAC and ranks 21st in Division II with 67 total saves. He is also second in the conference with 4.79 saves per match and a .807 save percentage.

• Montana State Billings is now 7-5-2 (4-2-1 GNAC) on the season and sits in a tie for second place with Simon Fraser in the conference standings with 13 points. Up next, the Yellowjackets will stay home to host Concordia on Thursday and Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• Northwest Nazarene dropped its only match of the week with a 1-0 loss at Montana State Billings on Saturday.

• The Nighthawks were limited to just six shots and one shot on goal in the loss.

• Goalkeeper Alex Nadermann recorded six saves on seven shots on goal in the 1-0 loss. Nadermann is fifth in the GNAC with 29 saves and fourth in the conference with a 1.65 goals against average.

• Northwest Nazarene is now 4-8-0 (0-6-0 GNAC) on the season. Up next, the Nighthawks will stay home to host Saint Martin’s on Thursday and Concordia on Saturday.

SAINT MARTIN'S
• Saint Martin’s took a 3-1 loss at home to Seattle Pacific in its only match of the week.

• Sebastian Navarro netted the only goal for the Saints in the 39th minute off an assist from Brandon Madsen.

• Madsen still tops the GNAC and ranks eighth in Division II with 12 goals while also ranking 10th in Division II with 27 points.

• Goalkeeper Dylan Shaw made six saves in the match. He ranks third in the GNAC with 45 saves.

• Despite a recent decline in scoring, the Saints still have the conference’s top-scoring offense with 30 total goals and 2.14 goals per match.

• Saint Martin’s is now 7-5-2 (2-4-1 GNAC) on the season. Up next, the Saints will hit the road to play at Northwest Nazarene on Thursday and Montana State Billings on Saturday.

SEATTLE PACIFIC
• Seattle Pacific split last week’s matches. The Falcons topped in-state rival Saint Martin’s, 3-1, on Thursday then lost a tough 4-3 match in double overtime at home to Concordia.

• Titus Grant contributed to all of the Falcons’ goals in the 3-1 victory over the Saints. Grant scored the first two goals of the match in the 18th and 32nd minutes then had the assist on the goal by Mario Vukic in the 59th minute.

• The Falcons tallied 14 shots and nine shots on goal and limited the Saints to just two shots on goal in the 3-1 win.

• Seattle Pacific scored three consecutive goals in the second half of the match against Concordia to take the lead, but the Cavs notched a goal in the last minute to send the match to overtime, where they would eventually net the game-winner.

• The three goal scorers against Concordia were Alden Massey (61st minute), Alex Mejia (70th minute) and Edu Calvo-Salinas (74th minute).

• Seattle Pacific is now 3-8-1 (2-5-0 GNAC) on the season. Up next, the Falcons have a busy week as they play at first-place Western Washington on Thursday and second-place Simon Fraser on Saturday.

SIMON FRASER
• Simon Fraser topped Concordia, 2-1, in Portland on Thursday then lost to Western Washington, 2-1, at home on Saturday.

• Matteo Polisi opened the scoring in the 2-1 win at Concordia with a goal in the 11th minute. Polisi had six shots and four shots on goal in the match.

• Concordia’s Nicholas Denley tied the match in the 82nd minute, but Simon Fraser’s Bjorn Borren notched the game-winning goal in the 84th minute to lift the Clan over the Cavs.

• Polisi scored the only goal for the Clan in the 2-1 loss to the Vikings. It was his eighth goal of the season. Polisi ranks second in the GNAC with eight goals and 19 points.

• The Clan defense limited the Vikings to just three total shots and two shots on goal in the 2-1 loss.

• Simon Fraser is now 7-3-1 (4-2-1 GNAC) on the season and sits in a tie for second place with Montana State Billings with 13 points. Up next, the Clan will continue its home stand as it hosts Seattle Pacific on Saturday.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• Western Washington won both of its matches last week, extending its winning streak to five matches. The Vikings topped Montana State Billings, 2-1, on Thursday then beat Simon Fraser, 2-1, on Saturday in a battle of the GNAC’s top teams.

• Camron Miller and Ryan Schaefer scored the two goals for the Vikings in the 2-1 win over the Yellowjackets.

• Georg Cholewa earned GNAC Offensive Player of the Week honors after he recorded six points in the two matches. He assisted on both goals in Thursday’s 2-1 win over the Yellowjackets then scored both goals, including the game-winner in the 77th minute, in Saturday’s 2-1 win over the Clan.

• For his performance, Cholewa was also selected as the United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Player of the Week, becoming the first GNAC player to earn the national award this season.

• Teagan Eldridge earned GNAC Defensive Player of the Week honors after he helped to anchor the Vikings in a pair of wins. He played all 90 minutes in both matches, helping to limit Montana State Billings to one goal and four shots on goal. The Vikings then limited Simon Fraser to just one goal. Eldridge also dished out the assist on Cholewa’s game-winning goal against the Clan.

• Goalkeeper Brandon Locke made eight saves in the two matches. He tops the GNAC and ranks sixth in Division II with a 0.52 goals against average and a .857 save percentage.

• Western Washington is ranked No. 23 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll.

• Western Washington is now 9-3-1 (6-0-1 GNAC) on the season and sits in first place in the conference standings with 19 points, six points ahead of Simon Fraser and Montana State Billings. Up next, the Vikings will begin a four-match home stand as they host Seattle Pacific on Thursday.