Nov. 12, 2005
Box Score
SPOKANE, Wash. - The University of San Francisco scored two goals in the first 18:12 and made them stand up for a 2-0 West Coast Conference men's soccer victory over Gonzaga University on Saturday afternoon at Martin Field.
The loss ended any aspirations the Bulldogs (7-9-4; 5-5-2) had of gaining a share of the WCC regular-season crown and a post-season berth. USF (11-5-4; 6-3-3), meanwhile, kept alive its hopes of defending its title. The Dons are currently in first place with 21 points and now await the outcome of Saturday night's match between Santa Clara University and the University of Portland in Portland. SCU has 20 points, a Broncos win or tie at Portland giving them the title because they went 1-0-1 against USF this season and would win the tiebreaker.
Matt Languis scored his third goal of the season for the Dons at 11:41, left-footing a thru ball from Aaron Chandler 8 yards out to the left post to beat Gonzaga keeper Dade Smith.
The Dons came back less than seven minutes later with their second goal, Mike Bagheri getting his first of the season at 18:12. The play began with a rush down the right sideline that Smith came out on and got trapped deep to the right of the goal near the endline. Chandler sent the ball back outside to the wing rather than trying to feed it in front of the empty net, and Bagheri's shot from 21 yards on the right wing found the net.
The Bulldogs didn't generate much of an offensive threat in the first half, getting outshot 6-1.
Gonzaga head coach Einar Thorarinsson made a keeper change in the second half, replacing Smith, who was in goal for Thursday's 2-1 overtime win over 11th-ranked SCU that kept GU's title hopes alive, with Vito Higgins.
It didn't take the Dons long to test Higgins, Chandler drilling a hard shot from nearly point blank range deep down the left side off Higgins' chest. Luke Holmes had a low, uncontested straightaway shot from six yards in the 59th minute that Higgins was able to corral. USF dominated play for the first part of the second half, but the Bulldogs put the pressure on the final 15 minutes. USF was also whistled for several late offside calls as the Bulldogs were sending players in trying to cut the deficit and the Dons were breaking out trying to get another insurance goal.
The Bulldogs had four corner kicks in a span of just over a minute starting at 78:20, but could not convert for a goal. One of the best chances was Grant Lundberg's shot from close range in heavy traffic that was tipped out of bounds, resulting in the fourth Bulldog corner kick in that span.
"The two early goals made it tough," Thorarinsson said. "They are a good team. We gave it a good run this year."
The Bulldogs went 5-3-1 over their last nine matches after being 2-6-3 through the first 11 outings, and played their way into title contention in the WCC.
Gonzaga may also have the goal scoring and total points champion in the WCC this season. George Josten has 12 goals for a one-goal lead over Michael Clegg of Saint Mary's College and a six-goal edge over the next closest pursuer heading into the final WCC regular-season matches of the weekend. Josten's 29 points are also six better than Clegg and 11 better than Chandler's 18 for USF. Jeff McAllister was the last Bulldog to win the goal and points titles in 1997. Post-season matches also figure into the goals and points title.
