Bulldogs Head To Seattle Wednesday, Host Oregon State Saturday
9/13/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Men's Soccer Match Facts
Wednesday, September 14 - at Seattle University, 4 p.m.
Saturday, September 17 - vs. Oregon State University, 1 p.m.
ALL TIMES PACIFIC TIME ZONE
BULLDOGS HIT THE ROAD: After being idle for 10 days, Gonzaga University is on the road for a mid-week game at Seattle University Wednesday at 4 p.m. The Bulldogs have not played since Sept. 4 when they defeated Long Island University 1-0 in the USD Nike Soccer Classic hosted by the University of San Diego.
RANKED OPPONENTS: Three teams on Gonzaga University's schedule are either ranked or receiving votes in this week's National Soccer Coaches Association of America Top 25. UC Irvine is fifth, while the University of Washington and West Coast Conference foe Santa Clara University are receiving votes. UC Irvine is the top-ranked team in the Far West rankings.
IF HE HAD HIS DRUTHERS... Head coach Einar Thorarinsson would have preferred to have a match last weekend rather than get a 10-day break this early in the season. "We would rather play a match this week, but we have to deal with what we have," he said. The Bulldogs will also have a 12-day break in the middle of the West Coast Conference season from Oct. 14-26.
BULLDOGS VS. REDHAWKS: Gonzaga University and Seattle University met last year for the first time since 1992, the Bulldogs taking a 2-1 victory on their way to the title in the Seattle University Tournament. The Bulldogs and the then-Chieftains were members of the Northwest Collegiate Soccer Conference. The Bulldogs were in a transitional phase in 1992, getting ready to join the NCAA Division I ranks and the West Coast Conference the following year. Seattle, meanwhile, joined the NCAA Division II ranks as a member of the Great Northern Athletic Conference in 2002 after nearly 20 years of NAIA membership, then jumped to the NCAA Division I ranks and joined the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation in 2009. Seattle University was a member of the West Coast Conference from 1971-80, leaving Division I in 1980. Gonzaga trails the overall series 10-4-0. Seattle, which changed its nickname from Chieftains to Redhawks in 2000, won that 1992 match between the teams 3-1 at Gonzaga. The Bulldogs won the first three meetings of the series, but Seattle rattled off 10 straight wins prior to Gonzaga's victory last season.
BULLDOGS VS. BEAVERS: Gonzaga University is undefeated in its last four matches with Oregon State University with last year's 3-2 victory in Corvallis. The Bulldogs had dropped four straight matches to the Beavers from 2002-05. The last time the teams met in Spokane they played to a 1-1 overtime tie in 2009, only one overtime period being played because of darkness. OSU leads the all-time series 17-8-4.
COMMON FOES: Gonzaga University and Seattle University have one foe in common in the young season. The Bulldogs lost their season opener at home to the University of Washington 3-0, while SU and the 23rd-ranked Huskies played to a scoreless tie Sunday at Seattle University.
FIRST GOAL: Freshman forward Nathanael Pacheco from Albuquerque, NM, scored his first collegiate goal when he knotted the match at 70:23 at UC Irvine. The Anteaters, ranked 14th at the time, went on to post a 2-1 overtime victory.
BACK-TO-BACK OT MATCHES: The last two matches have gone into overtime, with Gonzaga University splitting the pair. The Bulldogs lost at UC Irvine 2-1 then came back with a 1-0 victory over Long Island University in the USD Nike Soccer Classic hosted by the University of San Diego. The shutout was the second of Ryan Caballero's career and his first this season. The Bulldogs have been blanked once this season, 3-0 in the season opener against the University of Washington.
THREE STRAIGHT OT'S? With back-to-back overtime matches played heading into Wednesday's match at Seattle University, one only has to go back to the 2007 season to find the last time the Bulldogs played three straight extra-session matches. The Bulldogs lost 1-0 at home to the University of San Diego, tied 1-1 at Santa Clara University and 2-2 at home against the University of Portland. The Bulldogs played six OT matches that season, going 0-2-4. The six overtime matches are a single-season high.
PLAY IN OREGON STATE TOURNAMENT: Oregon State University will be in town Saturday to face Gonzaga University, then the Bulldogs will head to Corvallis, Ore., the following weekend to play in the Stephen Hensor/Joe Zaher Classic hosted by the Beavers. Gonzaga and OSU will not meet in the tournament, however. The Bulldogs will face Cal State Bakersfield in the tourney opener, then face UMKC the second day.
CONFERENCE OPENER ON THE HORIZON: Only two weekends of non-conference action remain prior to the start of West Coast Conference play for the Bulldogs. The Zags will be at the University of San Francisco Sept. 30 to open WCC play, then head to Santa Clara University Oct. 2. Gonzaga will play its WCC home opener Oct. 7 at 3 p.m. against pre-season favorite Loyola Marymount University.
THE THORARINSSON FILE: Einar Thorarinsson is in his 17th season at Gonzaga University. He has taken the Bulldogs to two NCAA Tournaments, the first in 2001 and the last in 2007. Thorarinsson is the winningest coach in Bulldog men's soccer history with a 130-136-25 record. He earned his third WCC Coach of the Year honor in 2005, and won his 100th Gonzaga match in 2006. For Thorarinsson's complete biography visit the web at http://www.gozags.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=627480&SPID=90833&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=26400&ATCLID=205176300&Q_SEASON=2011.
ON THE WEB: All Gonzaga University home matches and selected road contests will be available on video through the Zags Sports Channel online subscription available at http://www.gozags.com. Live Stats will be available free of charge for all home matches and selected road contests through the Gonzaga website.
