Opportunity awaits. After netting a pair of decisive victories last week, the Seattle Pacific University women's soccer team finishes out a four-game home stand this week with a chance to improve its standing, both in the conference and the region. The Falcons (4-3-0/7-4-2), unbeaten in their last five outings and winners of three in a row, host a non-conference match against Grand Canyon (2-11-1) Thursday afternoon (Oct. 17) and then resume Great Northwest Athletic Conference play Saturday (Oct. 19) against first-place Western Oregon (6-1-1/8-3-1). Next week's sole contest is an Oct. 26 visit to Northwest Nazarene.

Movin' on up. Seven games remain and after a slow start Seattle Pacific finds itself rapidly climbing the ladder in the GNAC standings and on the verge of a ranking in the Far West Region of NCAA Division II. The five-game unbeaten streak, which includes one tie, is the longest in the program's brief two-year existence and the three wins equals a standard. Last week the Falcons fared well against a regionally-ranked team for the third time this season, defeating Humboldt State, 2-1. A win over Western Oregon, ranked No. 5 in the region, would not only put SPU within percentage points of the Wolves for first place in the GNAC but could also plant them among the top nine or so teams in the Far West.

Lady in red. During the unbeaten string, opposing defenses have been seeing a lot of red, as in the red locks of forward Michelle Sanders (So., Centralia, Wa.). Following her four-goal week and the wins over Carroll College and Humboldt, Sanders was selected as the GNAC player of the week. Against Carroll, she broke the SPU single-game record for total points (8) and tied the mark for goals (3) with a hat trick plus two assists. She also kick-started the comeback versus the Lumberjacks with an early second-half header, her fifth goal during the unbeaten streak. Coach Bobby Bruch's squad also set a team record for goals in a match in the 7-1 win over Carroll. Sanders now shares the goal record with Andrea Larsen, but overtook Larsen (25) as the career leader in points, 29-25. Sanders is second among all GNAC players with 18 total points.

Setting new standards for excellence. Bruch's mantra for 2002, (with apologies to Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis) has been "a commitment to excellence," and excelling is just what the Falcons did last week. Five of the school-record seven goals came courtesy of scoring co-leaders Sanders and Shannon Lovejoy (Fr., Seattle, Wa./Seattle Prep). The two are tied for No. 2 in the GNAC with seven goals apiece. Against the Saints, Sanders netted a pair of unassisted scores just three minutes apart. For the week, the pair scored an impressive seven goals between them. Lovejoy, who along with speedy Katy Nydam (Fr., Oak Harbor, Wa.) had two goals versus Carroll, buried the game-winner against Humboldt State with just over 10 minutes remaining.

The supporting cast. Although Megan Lienhard (Fr., Everett, Wa./Cascade) leads Seattle Pacific and is among the GNAC leaders in assists, last week it was LeRin Farrison (Sr., Seattle, Wa./Mountain View/Highline CC) who had the playmaking hot foot, so to speak. In the two games, Farrison assisted on four of the Falcons' nine goals, moving up to fourth in the GNAC. All five of Farrison's assists have come in the last four games. She is the sole senior on Bruch's squad.

Tough D. Bruch's back line of defenders Nicole Ruiz (Jr., Federal Way, Wa./Federal Way-Barry), Chrissy Berke (Fr., Park Ridge, Il./Maine South), Jean Kolb (Fr., Eugene, Or./South Eugene) and Katie Lim (So., Hillsboro, Or.) pretty much stifled opponents last week, allowing just two goals and only eight shots. Goalkeepers Jennifer Hull (So., Eugene, Or./Sheldon) and Erin Pierce (Fr., Milwaukie, Or./Rex Putnam) were not challenged very frequently, and were required to make just two saves between them. Ruiz even struck a blow offensively, lobbing a ball into Lovejoy for an assist on her second goal vs. Carroll.

Footnotes. Sanders leads the conference in points per game (1.50) and goals per game (0.58), and is tied for first in game-winning goals (3)...Lovejoy (15) is tied for sixth in total points...Lienhard is third in assists (6) and ninth in points (14) Hull is fifth in GAA (1.84)...SPU is 7-0-1 in games in which it has scored at least two goals. When the Falcons score first, they are 4-0-2...SPU has not allowed more than one goal in the last four games.

Tickets, please. General admission tickets to all SPU regular season home games are $5, with students and senior citizens receiving tickets for $3. Group rates are available by phoning (206) 281-2085 in advance.

Missing links. For the latest and best information on Seattle Pacific University athletics, stay where you're at -- on The Falcons Online. For updated standings and statistics, see the Great Northwest Athletic Conference web site.