Nov. 12, 2008

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BULLDOGS NEED WIN, HELP FOR WCC CROWN: Nothing else matters if Gonzaga University doesn't win Sunday's West Coast Conference regular-season finale at Saint Mary's College. But oh, what could be at stake with a victory. Some might consider it a longshot, but the Bulldogs can still claim the WCC crown outright and with it a return trip to the NCAA Tournament. However, they need some help. The final weekend of the WCC season finds the Bulldogs (6-4-1) and the University of San Francisco (6-3-1) tied for first place with 19 points, one point ahead of the University of San Diego (6-4-0). The weekend starts Friday with USF and USD meeting in a big showdown in southern California. Sunday, USF is at Loyola Marymount University and USD hosts Santa Clara University.

WHAT IT TAKES: In simplest terms, Gonzaga University needs to win at Saint Mary's College, the University of San Francisco can't pick up more than two points and the University of San Diego can't pick up more than three points if the Bulldogs are to win the title outright. The complete list of tiebreakers is too numerous to go into because a Gonzaga-USF tie would be decided by descending order of finish since those two teams split the season series. If USD defeats USF and loses to Santa Clara University and USF defeats Loyola Marymount University - and Gonzaga picks up the needed win at SMC - Gonzaga would win the tiebreaker over USF by virtue of being 1-1 against USD while USF would be 0-2 against the Toreros. If USF defeats USD and loses to LMU and USD loses to SCU - and Gonzaga downs SMC - and the University of Portland finishes fourth then the tiebreaker would go to USF because of its season sweep against UP while the Bulldogs split with their Pacific Northwest rival.

NCAA SELECTION SHOW: The 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship selections will be announced live on ESPNews Monday between 3-3:30 p.m. PST. There are no satellite coordinates that can be distributed as ESPNews is a scrambled satellite signal. ESPNews is located on Spokane's Comcast channel 402, DirecTV at channel 207 and on Dish Network at channel 142. Check local listings for the ESPNews cable channel.

BULLDOGS TOPPLE LEAGUE LEADERS: Gonzaga University downed West Coast Conference leading University of San Diego 4-1 and Loyola Marymount University 2-1 last weekend in the final home matches of the season for the Bulldogs. Tye Perdido scored his team-leading eighth goal of the season Friday as the teams traded goals 33 seconds apart, the Gonzaga gained a 2-1 halftime lead when senior Bryan Mullaney notched his first goal of the season - the match winner - at 35:41. The four goals marked the biggest offensive output for the Bulldogs this season and was their first four-goal match since a 4-0 home victory over Saint Mary's College Oct. 8, 2006.

ALL GOOD THINGS: After scoring in four straight matches since returning from a broken thumb - and playing in a cast - Gonzaga University sophomore Nick Love saw his streak snapped Sunday in the 2-1 win over Loyola Marymount University. He did have a good scoring opportunity, forcing LMU keeper Jack McCormack to make a diving stop from 8 yards shortly after entering the contest midway through the first half. 10 OR BUST: Gonzaga University will be seeking its first 10-win season since 2000 when the Bulldogs travel to Saint Mary's College for Sunday's regular-season finale. Gonzaga went 11-6-0 and finished second in the West Coast Conference at 5-1-0. Gonzaga has won 10 or more matches four times in coach Einar Thorarinsson's 13 previous seasons, and 9 matches five times, including each of the past three seasons.

BULLDOGS VS. GAELS: Gonzaga University and Saint Mary's College battled to a 1-1 double-overtime tie in the first meeting at Gonzaga this season as all of the scoring came in the first 40 minutes of the match. The Bulldogs are 4-0-2 in the last six meetings with SMC. Gonzaga leads the overall series 10-7-3. Gonzaga has won the last three meetings in Moraga, Calif., including last year's 1-0 verdict.

THORARINSSON HITS, PASSES 50: We're not talking age, but rather the number of West Coast Conference wins for Gonzaga University head coach Einar Thorarinsson, who got WCC victories 50 and 51 last weekend in his 14th year on the sidelines. That makes him the fourth winningest coach in WCC matches and the second winningest active coach in the WCC ranks behind Seamus McFadden of the University of San Diego who leads both categories with 79 victories in 28 years at the helm.

THE STATS: Junior Tye Perdido has moved into a tie for eighth with Arni Ingi Pjetursson (2001-04) on the Gonzaga University career goals chart with 15, and his 37 points knot him with Abbas Faridnia (1998-01). Ben Funkhouser's 6 assists tie him for sixth on the single-season list and his 9 career assists are one shy of cracking the top 10.

THE THORARINSSON TALE OF THE TAPE: Gonzaga University head coach Einar Thorarinsson is 119-109-22 in his 14th season with the Bulldogs. His overall record is 238-161-35 that includes nine seasons across town at Whitworth College. He picked up his 100th Gonzaga win in 2006 with a 3-0 home win at Saint Mary's College. After going 3-10-2 in his first season of 1995, the Bulldogs have had winning seasons in six of the last 10 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. In 2005 Gonzaga went to the final match of the season with a chance to win the WCC title. He was accorded his third WCC Coach of the Year honor in 2005 to go with similar honors won in 1996-97 as he was the first coach in Gonzaga history to receive back-to-back WCC Coach of the Year accolades. He is the fourth winningest coach overall in WCC contests with 51 wins and is second among active coaches, Seamus McFadden of the University of San Diego atop both lists with 79 wins.