Zags, Pilots In Home-And-Home
10/21/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 21, 2004
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Fri., Oct. 22 - at Portland, 7 p.m.
Sun., Oct. 24 - Portland, 2 p.m.
Fri., Oct. 29 - Loyola Marymount, 3 p.m.
Sun., Oct. 31 - San Diego, 11 a.m.
BULLDOGS, PILOTS IN HOME-AND-HOME: Gonzaga University and the University of Portland will become well acquainted with each this weekend. The teams will play their home-and-home series Friday and Sunday. The Bulldogs will make the trek to Portland for Friday's 7 p.m. match, then the teams will head to Spokane for Sunday's quick 2 p.m. re-match. The new format of the West Coast Conference has the schedule set up as a double round robin, meaning teams meet twice in a home-and-home format.
FRIDAY TIME CHANGE: Friday's match at the University of Portland is now a 7 p.m. start. Some schedules reflect an earlier start. The Pilots installed lights at Merlo Field earlier this fall, thus the switch to the night match against Gonzaga University.
THORARINSSON UPDATE: Gonzaga University head coach Einar Thorarinsson continues to recuperate at home following an automobile-bicycle accident Oct. 2 in Los Angeles. He was released from UCLA Medical Center in Westwood, Calif., and returned to Spokane on Oct. 11. Thorarinsson had surgery Oct. 4 to repair facial injuries suffered in the accident, including a broken jaw. The 10-year Gonzaga head coach is regaining his strength and hopes to return to the office on a limited basis. "We still don't know when or if Einar will return to the sidelines this season," Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth said. "That decision will be made on the advice of his doctor. Our only concern still is that Einar make a full recovery. When the time is right for him to return to work, he will. We will abide by what the doctors tell Einar and evaluate the situation on a weekly basis. In the meantime, assistant coaches Mike Thompson and Mike McCarthy will continue to run the team."
NO. 13 PROVES LUCKY: Thirteen proved to be a lucky number for Gonzaga University last Sunday. After dropping a 1-0 decision to the University of San Francisco last Friday to extend their West Coast Conference losing streak to 12 matches over the past three seasons, the Bulldogs defeated Saint Mary's College 2-1 to snap the skid and get the proverbial monkey off their back.
IF WE SCORE, WE WILL WIN: That seems to be n obvious statement, but in the case of Gonzaga University it really rings true. The Bulldogs have been blanked in all eight losses, thus they have won every match in which they have scored this season. Last Sunday's goal ended a scoreless streak of four matches dating back to Sept. 26.
ARNI SCORES: Gonzaga University senior Arni Pjetursson had a goal and an assist in last Sunday's 2-1 win over Saint Mary's College. Pjetursson has four goals this season, giving him 14 career goals and knotting him for seventh on the all-time Bulldog goals chart with Abbas Faridnia (1998-01). Brett Fink (1997-99) is sixth with 16 and Jason Adams (1991-94) is fifth with 17. Pjetursson's assist was his second of the season and the 12th of his career, moving him into a tie for fifth with Jeff McAllister (1994-97) on the all-time assists list. He needs on to tie Scott Yuska (2000-03) for fourth. His 40 career points are sixth, one behind Adams' 41.
BULLDOGS VS. PILOTS: The University of Portland leads the overall series with Gonzaga University 15-5-0 and the Pilots have won the last three matches, including last year's 3-2 double-overtime match in Spokane. The Pilots won the first eight matches in the series dating back to 1981. The Bulldogs joined the West Coast Conference for the 1993 season, and Gonzaga's inaugural WCC victory was 2-1 over Portland on Oct. 12, 1993, at Martin Field on the GU campus. In WCC play the Pilots hold a 6-5-0 record. The teams also met in the 2001 NCAA First Round at the University of Washington, the Pilots taking a 1-0 victory in Gonzaga's lone NCAA Tournament appearance.
SOSNOVEC IN GOAL: Gonzaga University sophomore keeper Sean Sosnovec has been solid in goal of late, allowing just three goals over the last three matches. He has played every minute of every West Coast Conference match this season and has started 11 starts overall.
SENIOR DAY: Gonzaga University will bid adieu to three seniors one week from Sunday when the Bulldogs conclude the home portion of the 2004 season. Jon Baune (Coeur d'Alene, Idaho), Mike Herzog (Kalispell, Mont.) and Arni Pjetursson (Reykjavik, Iceland) will make their final home appearances next weekend when the Bulldogs face Loyola Marymount University on Friday and the University of San Diego on Sunday.
ON THE INTERNET: All Gonzaga University home matches and several road matches can be followed in real time on the Internet via Gametracker. Go to the Gonzaga web site at http://www.gozags.com and look for the Gametracker link in the Upcoming Events listing. Click on the link and follow the Bulldogs up to the minute. Gametracker is a service of College Sports Online, official athletic website provider for Gonzaga.
THE THORARINSSON TALE OF THE TAPE: Gonzaga University head coach Einar Thorarinsson is 89-73-10 in his 10th season with the Bulldogs. His overall record is 203-124-23 that includes nine seasons across town at Whitworth College. After going 3-10-2 in his first season of 1995, the Bulldogs have had winning seasons in six of the last eight seasons under Thorarinsson. His teams led the West Coast Conference in wins with a 14-4-0 record in 1997 and 12-4-2 mark in 1998, capturing WCC co-championships in each of those seasons. The Bulldogs were 9-5-2 in 2001, making their inaugural College Cup appearance.
