Sept. 18, 2000
SPOKANE, Wash. -
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GONZAGA BULLDOGS (2-5-0) vs.
PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS (0-7-0)
Tuesday - Sept. 19 - 2 p.m. @ Martin Field
GONZAGA BULLDOGS at
WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS
Friday - Sept. 22 - 3 p.m. @ Pullman, WA
LAST TIME OUT: Gonzaga lost both games over the weekend during its swing through Southern Idaho. On Friday, the Bulldogs jumped out to a two-goal lead only to lose the game on a last minute Idaho State goal. It marked the first time this season that Gonzaga had scored first and lost a game. In that game senior Kellie Leaf collected two goals and Megan Black added her third assist of the season. On Sunday afternoon Gonzaga fell behind early against Boise State losing the game by a 5-1 count. Freshman Walker Loseno scored the lone Gonzaga goal for the game increasing her team lead in the category to five.
VS. PORTLAND STATE: This will be the seventh meeting between Gonzaga and Portland State with the Zags holding a slight 3-2-1 advantage in the series. Gonzaga owns a 2-0-1 record in the series when playing at Martin Field including a 5-3 home victory last season. The Vikings come into this game struggling with a 0-7-0 record, including losses to previous Gonzaga opponents Eastern Washington and Montana. Portland State has only produced four goals on the season while allowing 32. Freshman Nicole Fagg is the Vikings leading scorer with two goals.
VS. WASHINGTON STATE: This will be the 11th meeting between Gonzaga and Washington State. The Cougars have won all ten previous matches and are Gonzaga's oldest rival with the series dating back to the programs start in 1991. Last season Washington State shut out Gonzaga 4-0 at Martin Field. WSU comes into the game with a 4-2-0 record and has proved to be a solid defensive team early in the season. Junior keeper Lindsey Jorgensen has only given up 8 goals on the season with a 1.22 GAA. The Cougs as a team have only scored 8 goals for the season.
COACH STILES RETURNS FOR SECOND SEASON: Gonzaga head coach Shannon Stiles is in the middle of her second season guiding the Bulldogs soccer program. Her career record of 9-18-0 is second all-time at Gonzaga. Stiles needs just one more conference victory and six overall wins to become the school's leader in both categories. In her rookie campaign, Stiles coached the Bulldogs to their second most successful season in school history with a 7-13-0 record. Although the Zags finished 1-6 in the West Coast Conference, it marked only the second time the team had won a WCC game and first time Gonzaga had not finished last in the WCC.
LEAF CLIMBING GU CHARTS: Senior Kellie Leaf (Spokane, WA/Mead HS), a defender through her first three collegiate years, collected the first multiple goal game of her careeer against Idaho State on Friday. With the four points Leaf moved into sixth place on the Gonzaga career list with 18 points. She now trails Kiera Silva by two points for fifth place.
BLACK TIES ASSIST MARK: Just seven games into the season sophomore Megan Black (Spokane, WA/University HS) appears to be on her way to setting a new single-season record for assists. With her two assists over the weekend, Black moved into a tie for fifth place with four assists. The single-season assist record at Gonzaga is seven, set last season by current Gonzaga sophomore Claire Whitfield.
LOSENO INCREASES TEAM LEAD: Freshman Walker Loseno (Renton, WA/Kentridge HS) continues to have one of the best first-year seasons in Gonzaga history. The midfielder currently leads the Bulldogs team with five goals and ten total points. With one more goal, Loseno will crack the single-season Top 5 matching current Zag Katie Carpenter's six-goal output last season. In terms of freshman records, Loseno stands four goals behind the GU record of 9 goals set by Sara Streufert in 1997.
LAST MINUTE LOSS AGAIN: For the second time this season Gonzaga dropped a match with less then five minutes remaining. Last week the Bulldogs lost to Oregon State 1-0 as the Beavers scored during the 86th minute. On Friday, Gonzaga again lost a heartbreaker as Idaho State knocked home the game winner with 55 seconds remaining in the contest. In that game Gonzaga had jumped out to a 2-0 lead at the half before giving up three goals in the second half.
GOAL PACE AHEAD OF LAST YEAR: Through seven matches into the 2000 season, Gonzaga is on pace to shatter the school record for goals scored. The record set in 1997 and matched last season is 34 goals scored. To date this season Gonzaga has scored 18 goals and is on pace to finish the season with 38 goals. Last season Gonzaga did not reach the 18-goal plateau until the 13th match of the season, a 5-3 victory over Portland State. In 1997 it took Gonzaga until the 10th match to reach 18 goals.
BREAK-DOWN IN GOAL: After turning in a solid performance against Eastern Washington freshman goalkeeper Tara Curtis (Medford, OR/Phoenix HS) looked like she was having a repeat performance against Idaho State shutting out the Bengals through the opening 45 minutes. Idaho State finally broke through the Zags defense with two goals during a five-minute span midway through the second half. The Bengals then drove home the game winner with a rebound off the crossbar. On Sunday, Curtis allowed two early goals to put the Bulldogs down early to Boise State. After giving up two more Bronco goals in the second half, Curtis was replaced with senior keeper Gina Legaz (Seattle, WA/Blanchet HS). Legaz finished the game giving up a goal with five minutes remaining. For Gonzaga it was the highest goal total they had allowed on the season.
