Wednesday, September 14, 2016

PORTLAND - In the last week before before conference play begins, six teams will be in action and four of them will take on PacWest Conference opponents. Of the six teams playing this week, five of them have winning records, while Montana State Billings is 2-2 after two shutout victories over the weekend.

Simon Fraser is headed to the Hawaiian Islands for a pair against BYU-Hawaii and Hawaii Pacific. The Clan is one of only four teams in the nation that hasn’t allowed a goal yet this season. Concordia will travel to northern California to play Notre Dame de Namur and Academy of Art. Northwest Nazarene is ranked ninth in the West Region in the NSCAA rankings after winning both matches last week. The Crusaders will attempt to continue their winning streak at Dixie State.

Seattle Pacific found its winning ways again when the Falcons returned to Interbay Stadium, where they now have a 28-match unbeaten streak. That streak will be tested by Fort Hays State, which will play at Western Washington on Thursday. The Vikings fell out of the NSCAA rankings with a loss to Metro State, but rebounded with a convincing 4-0 win against Colorado Christian.

GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

OFFENSE

Stephen MacDonald, Seattle Pacific
F • 6-2 • 180 • Senior • Phoenix, Ariz.
MacDonald exploded for five goals on six shots on goal in the Falcons’ two victories over Colorado Christian on Thursday and Metro State on Saturday. He scored two goals on three shot attempts against Colorado Christian and registered a hat trick against Metro State.

Also Nominated: Kyle Witzel (Saint Martin’s), Ryan Dhillion (Simon Fraser), Keon Jones (Northwest Nazarene), Oliver Posarelli (Montana State Billings), Anthony Dean (Western Washington), Matt Paine (Concordia).

DEFENSE

Tom Lohmann, Montana State Billings
GK • 6-2 • 185 • Senior • Berlin, Germany
Lohmann picked up two shutouts and made 10 saves and was selected as the Defensive MVP of the Romrock Classic. Lohmann made six saves in Friday’s 1-0 victory over Dixie State and made four saves in Saturday’s 3-0 victory over South Dakota Mines. The matches were the fifth and six shutouts of his career, moving him to No. 2 on the MSUB all-time list. Also Nominated: Linus Mansson (Northwest Nazarene).

GNAC MILESTONE TRACKER

Brandon Watson (SFU) - Watson recorded his 25th career shutout this week, surpassing Zach Johnson of Seattle Pacific, who played from 2009-12, for third most shutouts in conference history. Watson is now just two shutouts away from the all-time conference record, but one of the players who holds a share of the record is also in his senior season.

Cody Lang (SPU) - Once again, Lang narrowly missed out on a record-setting evening this week, allowing one goal in both wins. That ended his scoreless streak in September home games at 562:50. The senior goalkeeper holds a share of the conference record for shutouts. With his next shutout, he will become the first player in GNAC history to record 28. The senior will get another chance to break the record on Saturday against Fort Hays State.

Adam Jones (SFU) - Jones saw a pair of streaks come to an end earlier this season, but the sophomore wasn’t slowed down for long. In Saturday’s 2-0 win against Notre Dame de Namur, Jones assisted on the first goal of the game. In his career, he has scored a point in seven of nine total away games. Simon Fraser will play twice more away from home this week in its trip to Hawaii.

Kyle Witzel (SMU) - The junior midfielder scored his second goal this season, moving him into the top 50 in the GNAC all-time in career goals scored with 14. He also ranks second amongst active players, just two behind Montana State Billings’ Ricardo Palomino.

Ryan Foo (NNU) - Foo has recorded 34 saves already this season for 174 career saves. That is second among active goalkeepers and is 15th all-time in conference history. He also ranks fourth in total saves this year in all of NCAA Division II. Foo also leads in the conference in minutes played having played in five full games and two overtime periods.

Matt Paine (CU) - After missing the first two games of the season, Paine came off the bench to score two goals in a 2-2 tie against George Fox. It was his eighth multi-point game, which ranks tied for 15th in conference history. He now has 13 career goals and 33 career points, which rank, 63rd and 52nd respectively, in the GNAC all-time leaders. He has also scored a point in three consecutive games in which he has played going back to the 2015 season.

Simon Fraser - The Clan has opened the season with three consecutive wins, scoring a total of seven goals. The Clan has won all of its last nine matches, scored a goal in all of its last 10 and scored multiple goals in each of the last seven games. The Clan’s streaks will be tested again in Hawaii. After that, the Clan will finally return to Canada, where a 12-match home unbeaten streak is waiting for SFU.

AROUND THE GNAC

CONCORDIA
• Concordia, ranked No. 8 in the West Region, tied George Fox, 2-2 on Saturday, in its only contest this week.
• Matt Paine scored two goals off the bench in the tie. He now has eight career multi-point games, which is the most among active players in the conference. Paine also ranks second among active players in points scored with 33.
• The Cavaliers will go to the Bay Area for a pair of matches against PacWest squads.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings bounced back from a tough opening week with a pair of wins this week to get back to the .500 mark.
• Notably absent during the first week was Ricardo Palomino. The 2015 GNAC Newcomer of the Year started both games this week after only playing limited time off the bench against Cal State San Bernardino earlier in the year. Palomino took four shots this week, but didn’t find the back of the net.
• Oliver Posarelli has a team-best two goals this year, scoring two insurance goals in the 3-0 win over South Dakota Mines.
• On Thursday, the Yellowjackets will host California Baptist. Then on Monday, they will wrap up non-conference play hosting Mary at 1 p.m. Mountain.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• The Crusaders, ranked ninth in the NSCAA West Region rankings, lead the conference as a team in every offensive category: shots (74), points (47), goals (15), and assists (17). They rank 22nd in the nation in points and sixth in assists.
• Ebu Camara has a share of the team-best  in goals with three this year, and 42.7 percent of his shots have found the back of the net.
• Rafael Junqueira has come off the bench in all five games and scored three goals, including two that went for game-winners. His first goal was a penalty kick against Westminster.
• Five different NNU players have recorded multiple assists in the first two weeks of the season, including Alex Mitrovic and Michael Mollay who both have three.
• Ryan Foo tallied 19 saves in the saves week of the season, pacing the conference with 34 saves this year. He ranks third in save percentage (.791) and sixth in goals against average (1.72).

SAINT MARTIN’S
• The Saints held onto its 2-1 lead this week, defeating Notre Dame de Namur by that score on Thursday.
• Saint Martin’s is the only team not in action this week.
• Kyle Witzel has two goals and an assist this season for a total of five points, which ranks seventh in the conference
• Saint Martin’s scored two goals in each of its first three games. The Saints rank fourth in the conference in goals scored this season.

SEATTLE PACIFIC
• Seattle Pacific scored nine goals this week in its first two victories of the season.
• The Falcons are unbeaten in their last 29 home matches during the regular season.
• Stephen MacDonald leads the GNAC in points (12), goals (6), game-winning goals (2) and shots (15). His six goals rank third in the nation and his 12 points ranks fourth.
• Jordan Kollars leads the conference in assists with four in four matches. His rate of one assist per match ranks ninth in the nation.
• Gabe Kellum has three goals and one assist this year.
• Cody Lang is one shutout away from breaking the GNAC record. He is currently tied for the conference record at 27. His next chance to break the record will be against Fort Hays State on Saturday.

SIMON FRASER
• The Clan improved their start to the 2016 season to 3-0 with a 2-0 win over Notre Dame de Namur.
• Simon Fraser remained No. 1 in the West Region and No. 6 in the nation in the latest NSCAA Coaches Poll.
• SFU has now won seven consecutive matches by multiple goals, including shutouts in the last five. The Clan has also scored a goal in each of the last 10 matches and are now on a nine-match winning streak, which is the longest active streak in the conference. The GNAC record for longest winning streak is 16.
• The Clan will test its nine-match winning streak in Hawaii this week, playing at BYU-Hawaii and Hawaii Pacific.
• The Clan has not allowed a goal yet, facing very little pressure. Simon Fraser has only allowed two shots on goal all season, which were blocked and saved. Overall, the Clan has outshot opponents 42-14.
• Simon Fraser has seven goals this season and all seven have been scored by different players. Ryan Dhillon has played a part in three goals, scoring one and assisting two.
• Simon Fraser has the latest home opener of any GNAC team. The Clan will finally be introduced to Terry Fox Field on Sept. 22 in its GNAC opener against Seattle Pacific.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• Western Washington dropped out of the NSCAA West Region Top-10 following a 1-2 loss to Metro State, but the Vikings quickly bounced back with a 4-0 win over Colorado Christian, in which they put 16 shots on goal, compared to just two by their opponents.
• Last year, WWU ranked sixth as a team in goals against average, but after two weeks, the Vikings now rank 16th in the nation with a goal agaisnt average of 0.47, which is second in the conference.
• Anthony Dean leads the Vikings offense with three goals and two assists for a total of eight points. Those eight points rank second in the GNAC and 20th in NCAA Division II.
• Western Washington will host Fort Hays State on Thursday before taking a week-long break to get ready for the conference opener the following Thursday.