Men's Soccer Plays Pair Of Home Finales This Weekend
11/3/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Nov. 3, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Friday, November 5 - vs. University of San Diego, 1 p.m.
Sunday, November 7 - vs. Loyola Marymount University, 1 p.m.
Sunday, November 14 - at Santa Clara University, Noon
END OF REGULAR SEASON
ALL TIMES PACIFIC TIME ZONE
BULLDOGS PLAY HOME FINALES: Gonzaga University's men's soccer team plays its home finales this weekend when the University of San Diego visits Friday followed by Loyola Marymount University Sunday. Action starts at 1 p.m. both days at Gonzaga Soccer Field. The Bulldogs conclude the regular season next Sunday with a noon match at Santa Clara University.
WCC STANDINGS: Several teams are still jockeying for position heading into the final two weeks of the West Coast Conference season. Gonzaga University will try to escape last place in the conference standings. The Bulldogs have three points, two behind the University of San Francisco. The University of San Diego has nine points heading into Friday's match at Gonzaga. Santa Clara University sits atop the WCC standings with 19 points, followed by Saint Mary's College with 18 points, the University of Portland with 17 points and Loyola Marymount University with 16. The Bulldogs could climb as high as fifth in the WCC by sweeping their final three matches.
RANKED FOE: Loyola Marymount University brings a No. 10 NSCAA/HendrickCars.com Far West regional ranking into Sunday's match at Gonzaga University. It marks the eighth Bulldog opponent in the last 11 matches to come into the match with a Far West ranking. The Lions were ranked 21st in last week's NSCAA/HendrickCars.com and 24th in the Soccer America rankings until a pair of losses last weekend dropped them out of both polls. Two teams on the Gonzaga schedule are still ranked in the Top 25. UC Irvine in seventh in both polls, and West Coast Conference foe Saint Mary's College entered the rankings 25th in Soccer America this week.
BULLDOGS DROP RAOD MATCHES: Gonzaga University dropped a pair of West Coast Conference road matches last week, leaving the Bulldogs winless in five WCC road contests this season. Saint Mary's College scored with two seconds remaining last Friday to take a 2-1 victory, and the University of San Francisco picked up its first WCC victory of the season with a 2-0 shutout of the Bulldogs Sunday.
SENIOR FAREWELL: Five Gonzaga University seniors will play their final home match at Gonzaga Soccer Field Sunday. Collin Harrison (Boulder, Colo.), Nick Love (Kaneohe, Hawai'i), Christian Seon (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada), Stefan Eysteinsson (Neskaupstadur, Iceland) and Philippe Garre (Scottsdale, Ariz.) will be honored in pre-match ceremonies Sunday.
CLOCKS FALL BACK: Daylight Saving Time ends this weekend as the clocks get turned back one hour at 2 a.m. Sunday morning. Don't forget to turn your clocks back one hour when you go to bed Saturday night.
ZAGS AT FULL STRENGTH: After playing each of last weekend's matches with players sidelined due to card infractions, Gonzaga University will be at full strength this weekend.
BULLDOGS VS. TOREROS: The University of San Diego took the first meeting with Gonzaga University 2-1 in San Diego the second weekend of West Coast Conference action. Patrick Wallen scored a pair of second-half goals for USD to erase a 1-0 Gonzaga lead, the decisive goal coming in the 79th minute. James Partee's first goal of the season at 15:13 had given the Bulldogs the lead which stood until 55:11 when Wallen's first goal drew USD even. The loss pushed Gonzaga's record 2-10-0 at San Diego since the Bulldogs joined the WCC in 1993. USD took a pair a pair of 1-0 victories over Gonzaga last season. The Toreros have had the upper hand in the series, bringing an 18-5-1 series advantage into Friday's match.
BULLDOGS VS. LIONS: Gonzaga University dropped the West Coast Conference opener this year 3-1 at Loyola Marymount University. Zach Smith's goal in the 53rd minute drew Gonzaga even in erasing a 1-0 LMU lead that came in the 14th minute. But the Lions scored at 71:10 to take the lead and got the insurance goal just 1:14 seconds later. The teams split a pair of 2-1 decisions last season. Gonzaga holds a 13-11-1 edge in the overall series.
STAT LEADERS: Stefan Eysteinsson and Colin Flynn remained tied for the goal and total points lead for Gonzaga University this season. Each has scored three goals and added an assist for seven points. Flynn's last goal came Oct. 23 at the University of Portland, while Eysteinsson last dented the net Oct. 15 at home against the University of San Francisco. The duo has combined for six of Gonzaga's 14 goals this season.
CABALLERO MAKES THE SAVE: Gonzaga University redshirt freshman keeper Ryan Caballero, who has started all but the first match of the season, has 79 saves to move into sixth on the single-season Bulldog list. He moved ahead of current Gonzaga assistant coach Vito Higgins who had 76 saves in both 2003 and 2005. Caballero is averaging nearly five saves per match. The single-season record is 104 set by Scott Barnum last season. Caballero, who has a 1.81 GAA, has one shutout this season, 1-0 over the University of Illinois-Chicago at the Seattle University Tournament.
THE THORARINSSON FILE: Einar Thorarinsson is in his 16th 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 129-132-25 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/sports/m-soccer/mtt/thorarinsson_einar00.html.
ON THE WEB: All Gonzaga University home matches and selected road contests will be available on video through the CBS College Sports Online All-Access subscription service available at http://wwww.gozags. Gametracker will be available free of charge for all home matches and selected road contests through the Gonzaga website.
