SEATTLE (Nov. 18) ­ Technically speaking, the national championship game is still two weeks away. But the Seattle Pacific University women's soccer coach says the winner of Saturday's quarterfinal game will definitely be the favorite.

The unbeaten Falcons (19-0-3), ranked No. 2 in NCAA Division II, host defending champion and No. 1 Metro State of Denver. The No. 1-ranked Roadrunners own a perfect record of 23-0-0 and have won 47 straight overall. Kickoff is 1 p.m. at Interbay Stadium.

"I've gotten a lot of E-mails and phone calls asking why No. 1 and No. 2 would play so early," said SPU coach Chuck Sekyra. "I tell them that's just the way it is. But I believe it's true, these are the best two teams in the nation. This is the cream of the crop."

Seattle Pacific won the Far West Regional championship with what Sekyra termed "one half of our best soccer," referring to a second-half surge which resulted in a 2-0 victory over UC San Diego.

Both teams possess a stout defense. Each has allowed only 10 goals.

Offensively, Metro's Kylee Hanavan has scored 30 goals to rank fifth nationally. The Roadrunners' 4.22 goals per game leads the NCAA.

"They are very quick, very athletic and offensive-oriented," said Sekyra.

Seattle Pacific's Sarah Martinez (So., Bothell, Wa./Cedar Park Christian) has been scoring at will, with eight goals in her last seven games. Her total of 16 is one shy of the school record for the five-year-old program.

"I think we play a high level of soccer, we're very organized, with a lot of smart players and we're very deep," he said of his own squad. "We can play 20 players will no drop off in our level of play."

The winner of Saturday's game will meet either Carson-Newman (Tn.) or West Florida, who play Sunday. The semifinals and NCAA championship game are Dec. 1 and 3 in Wichita Falls, Tex.