Zags Keep Postseason Hopes Alive With Win Over Gaels
11/18/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
SPOKANE, Wash. — Facing a must-win scenario to keep their postseason hopes alive, the Gonzaga Bulldogs made a compelling declaration. Now, they just have to wait around to see if the people that matter heard it.
Clark Phillips tallied a pair of goals to lead Gonzaga to a 3-1 triumph over rival Saint Mary's on Sunday afternoon in a West Coast Conference men's soccer showdown. The win, coming on a day in which Gonzaga honored seven seniors, means GU still has a chance at an at-large berth in the NCAA Championship.
"We knew there was a chance if we won," said defender Josh Phillips, one of the seniors recognized in a pregame ceremony. "We just wanted to keep that hope alive that we could do something that this program hasn't done in a long time."
Gonzaga has made two postseason appearances in its history, the last coming in 2007. The Bulldogs boast a strong résumé. In addition to having an RPI of 21, the highest among WCC schools, the Zags finished the regular season with a 10-6-3 record. That marks their first double-digit win season since 2000. They also finished third in the WCC standings, their highest positioning since tying for second in 2008.
Still, the Bulldogs won't know if all of that is good enough to get them into the tournament until Monday morning. The NCAA bids, chosen by a committee, will be announced at 9 a.m. Pacific on NCAA.com. The tournament starts Thursday.
"It's going to be a long night for them," Gonzaga coach Einar Thorarinsson said of his players. "I've been there before. There are going to be a lot of teams that deserve to be in the tournament."
Added Josh Phillips: "There's going to be a lot of prayers and fingers crossed. Hopefully the committee will like what they see."
The Bulldogs certainly left a good final impression. They not only outmuscled a physical Saint Mary's squad — there were 29 fouls and two yellow cards in the game — but also utilized crisp passing to trigger their offense.
Gonzaga's aggressive attack netted its first goal in the 12th minute, when Jakob Granlund sent a right-to-left cross to Lars Ludwigs, who punched in a one-timer from 15 yards. It was Ludwigs' third goal of the season.
"I think once we had that goal, it was like we were crisper and more precise on our passes," Thorarinsson said. "Everything started to click, and most of the time, it was just like clockwork out there."
The Bulldogs expanded their advantage with a salvo early in the second half. On a corner kick in the 48th minute, Ludwigs found Clark Phillips, who headed the ball into the far side of the net for a 2-0 lead.
Only five minutes later, Nick Hamer sailed a long reverse pass downfield to his brother, Zach Hamer, who then fired a cross from the left wing to Clark Phillips. Phillips scored easily from 15 yards for his second goal of the game and team-leading ninth of the season.
"The entire team knew what we had to do," Phillips said. "It was just all about hard work today — and we got it done."
The Gaels (7-9-4, 5-5-2) did manage an unassisted goal in the 62nd minute, but they never really mounted a true threat. The Bulldogs outshot the Gaels 14-8. Perhaps more impressively, the Bulldogs never seemed bothered by their win-or-stay-home proposition.
"There has been pressure on us — we've had this pressure for the last four games," Thorarinsson said. "We tried to downplay it, but it's hard because the guys know they can't be losing games and still have a chance to get in.
"With that said," Thorarinsson added, "I didn't talk about having must-win games. We talked about how to conduct ourselves on the field and to bring energy to the field."
Given Sunday's result, his players must have listened. The Zags can only hope the NCAA selection committee paid attention, too.
"All I know is that if we get in the tournament, I am positive that we will definitely turn some heads and create some upsets," Clark Phillips said. "I am very positive of that."
