Last Interbay hurrah. The 12th-ranked Seattle Pacific University women’s soccer team (8-0-1/14-1-2) begins the next-to-last week of the regular season with a head of steam and a chance to clinch at least a tie for its second straight Great Northwest Athletic Conference crown. The Falcons, unbeaten in their last 14 games and winners of seven straight, host Humboldt State (6-1-2/11-3-2) Thursday night (Oct. 23) in the final home match. Then comes a Saturday (Nov. 1) game with Central Washington (1-8-0/4-14-0) in what promises to be a frigid Ellensburg. The final match of the regular season is Nov. 8 at Seattle University.

It’s crunch time. With three regular season matches remaining, Seattle Pacific is looking very good with regard to a postseason berth. Although it has no direct bearing on the playoff invitations, the NSCAA coaches poll pushed SPU one rung higher this week. A new NCAA Division II regional poll, which is used to determine postseason participants, is due later this week. The top four teams in the region earn playoff berths, which will be announced November 10. UC San Diego, the No. 3 team in the country, occupies the top NSCAA regional position, followed by SPU, Cal State Dominguez Hills, and Seattle U.

Race of three. Thanks to last week’s 1-0 home win over Seattle U., the Falcons now own sole possession of first place in the GNAC and it has become a three-team race. The Redhawks and Humboldt State remain in contention, each with one loss. A year ago, the GNAC crown was decided on the final day of the season, with Seattle Pacific defeating Seattle University 2-1 to claim first place outright.

Streaks alive. The Falcons bring three–count ‘em, three–streaks into the week. In addition to the unbeaten run which began Sept. 6 and the win string which started Oct. 1, Seattle Pacific has won 12 home games in a row, dating back to Oct. 8, 2002. It will be trying to finish the season unbeaten at Interbay Stadium, where it has gone 7-0-0 and out-scored visitors 24-1. In its last 28 games dating back to last season, SPU has lost just once and tied three.

Her night. Thursday is also Senior Night but it might as well be Nicole Ruiz Night. A steady two-year starter at sweeper, Ruiz (Sr., Federal Way, Wa./Federal Way-Barry) is the lone graduating senior. After SPU allowed 29 goals in 2001, the arrival of Ruiz helped bring that number down to 20 goals last season and just five this year. Ruiz is the only member of the squad with NCAA tournament experience, having played on Barry University’s team which reached the Division II semifinals in 2000 and the second round in 2001.

Talk of the town. Although Coach Chuck Sekyra’s stout defense is generating lots of buzz, the offense ain’t all that bad. The Falcons erupted for four goals at Northwest Nazarene. Shannon Lovejoy (So., Seattle, Wa./Seattle Prep) hit the game-winner against Seattle U. and again in Idaho. She shared GNAC Player of the Week with for the second time this season. With seven goals in her last seven games (including each of the last four outings), Lovejoy is tied for first in the conference scoring race with 12 goals. She’s also the leader in game-winners (6) and No. 2 in points (28).

Seamless defense. A new batch of NCAA statistical leaders is forthcoming this week and the Falcons should still rate among the top five in defense. Northwest Nazarene snapped a 649-minute scoreless streak over eight games. The shutout of Seattle U. had been the sixth in a row and the 13th overall. Goalkeeper Jennifer Hull (Jr., Eugene, Or./Sheldon), who was lifted from the NNU game with 20 minutes remaining, has 10 shutouts and was the national leader in goals-against average two weeks ago. Her GAA has now dropped to 0.19. She has not given up a goal in a conference game (739 minutes).

Footnotes. Heidi Jacobson (So., Bothell, Wa./Cedar Park Christian-Gonzaga), moved up to No. 4 in the conference in points (20) after her two assists at NNU...Michelle Sanders (Jr., Centralia, Wa.) scored twice and assisted on another at NNU to bring her career leading points total to 64. Lovejoy is second with 57...Sanders also owns the record of 30 points in a season...Individually, Jacobson is No. 3 in GNAC assists (8) while Sanders is No. 4 (7)...Allison Teague (Jr., Redmond, Wa./Bellevue Christian-Santa Clara) returned to the lineup against SU after missing one match with a head injury. She had an assist at NNU...As a team, SPU leads the GNAC in fewest goals allowed (5), goals against average (0.29) and shutouts (13). It is tied for first in goals (46) with Seattle U...SPU has yet to allow a first-half goal this season.

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

SPU Coaching Staff. Chuck Sekyra was hired as the Falcons' head coach on Feb. 24, 2002. Seykra, an assistant at the University of Washington for three seasons, has close ties to the Puget Sound soccer community and to Seattle Pacific in particular. He is a graduate of SPU, played on two NCAA championship teams and was assistant men's coach from 1998-99. Sekyra is head coach of the Washington State girls ODP Under-16 team and a Region IV ODP staff coach. He was a starter on the '86 squad which became the first in Division II history to win back-to-back national championships. Returning to the staff for her second year is Julie Cain. New to the bench are Kevin Blokker and volunteer assistant Steve Miller.

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.