Two to go. As the men's soccer season enters its final week, Seattle Pacific University is perhaps two wins away from securing its 12th straight trip to the NCAA playoffs. The Falcons (10-6-1), now ranked No. 21 nationally but more importantly tied for No. 2 in the region, host two games and then await word from the tournament committee. SPU faces Western Washington (9-9-1) Halloween Night (Oct. 31) and Simon Fraser (5-8-1) Saturday night (Nov. 3). The 16-team NCAA Division II bracket will be announced next Monday (Nov. 5) with first-round play Nov. 10.

Who's No. 2? Seattle Pacific is locked in a duel with Grand Canyon for the second and final berth in the Far West. Both teams won out last and remain deadlocked for No. 2 in the region. The Antelopes play in their conference semifinal game Friday in San Diego. The two teams met in Phoenix Aug. 24 with SPU prevailing 2-1. Defending national champion Cal State Dominguez Hills, ranked No. 5 nationally, is virtually assured of taking the top seed and home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The Toros eliminated the Falcons in the first round a year ago and won 3-2 in overtime at Carson, Ca., Sept. 1.

Happy trails, guys. Saturday's game will wrap-up the regular season and also serve as Senior Night with midfielders Erik Skipper (Sr., Hillsboro, Or./Glencoe) and Bob Schefter (Sr., Yakima, Wa./West Valley) to be honored during pregame introductions. Skipper's a four-year starter, two-time all-conference pick and the only holdover from the '98 squad which advanced to the Final Four. He's tied for No. 2 on the team in points (12) after scoring his fifth goal in last week's 5-0 victory over Humboldt State. Schefter, a three-year letterman, has started 14 games this season and fifth on the team with 11 points.

Scary setting, indeed. The final two regular season games couldn't be played in a more favorable setting. Seattle Pacific owns an all-time record of 42-8-2 at Interbay. Grant Falco (Jr., Spokane, Wa./University) has always excelled on his home field, scoring 14 of his 19 career goals. This fall Falco has either assisted or scored in six of the first seven home games. He leads the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in assists (10) and is No. 2 in total points (20). Brent Egbert (So., Bellingham, Wa./Sehome) has scored four goals at home this season. Falco and Egbert scored the first two goals last week and the Falcons finished off the Lumberjacks with four goals in 17 minutes of the second half.

Charge of the Late Brigade. Once again this year SPU has performed best in its darkest hour. Nearly knocked out of contention by Labor Day with three straight losses, it responded with six consecutive wins. Then, after losing two out of three in early October, the Falcons have gone unbeaten (2-0-1) in the last three games, twice averting losses with late three-goal barrages. Following five games in a row in which games were decided by a single goal, the win over Humboldt State was by a comfortable margin and gave Seattle Pacific a 7-3-0 record within the region. This has been the mother of all rebuilding years for Coach Cliff McCrath. Skipper and Falco are the only returnees to remain starters. Last week McCrath's starting lineup included seven sophomores and freshmen.

Footnotes. McCrath started James Ward (Fr., Salem, Or./Sprague) at keeper last week, but even with the result in hand he again moved Ward to forward in the final six minutes. Ward, who had three goals and two assists in the previous two games, got off one shot and just missed finishing a cross. He has a goals-against average of 1.47...Andy Sather (Fr., Liberty Lake, Wa./Ferris) notched his first career goal and Michael Schefter (So., Yakima, Wa./West Valley) also scored...Ryan Burleson (Fr., Shelton, Wa.) and Troy Johnson (Fr., Colorado Springs, Co./Doherty) each earned their first assist...Falco, defender Mike Pardini (Jr., Pasco, Wa.) and sweeper Matt Laughlin (So., Selah, Wa.) are the only players to start all 17 games...SPU has clinched its 31st straight winning season­the longest string in Div. II history. It is also assured of finishing second in the GNAC, behind Seattle U.

Opponents & series notes. Seattle Pacific has won 12 in a row over Western Washington and is unbeaten (30-0-2) in the last 32 meetings, dating back to 1971. Bob Schefter's long-range blast earned a 1-0 conference win at Bellingham Oct. 8. The series stands at 30-7-2...Simon Fraser has struggled under first-year coach Dave Elligott. The Clan did win at Interbay in 1998. A game in Burnaby, B.C., Sept. 15 was canceled. SPU leads the series 19-12-4.

Coaching Staff. Cliff McCrath begins the 2001 season as the active leader among all divisions in career coaching victories. He needs 14 to surpass San Francisco's recently-retired Steve Negoesco (543) as the all-time leader. McCrath has led SPU to a record 27 NCAA playoff appearances, including berths in each of the last 11 years, and five national titles (1978, '83, '85, '86 and '93). He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame and is a past national coach of the year. His staff includes former Falcons Mark Metzger ('78 championship team), Peter Hattrup ('83 and '85 title teams) and Chuck Granade ('93 NCAA winners).

Tickets, Please. Ticket prices for all SPU regular season home games are $7 for reserved and $5 for general admission, with students and senior citizens receiving G.A. tickets for $3. Group and team rates are available by phoning (206) 281-2085 in advance.