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Three in five. After a fairly relaxed pace for the opening week, things get busy in a hurry for the 10th-ranked Seattle Pacific University women’s soccer team. The Falcons (2-0-0) play their next three games, including their first road test, in a span of five days, beginning with a visit by Sonoma State (1-1-0) Thursday night (Aug. 30). Cal State Stanislaus (2-0) completes the four-game home stand Saturday afternoon (Sept. 1) before a Tuesday (Sept. 4) trip to Chico State (1-0-0). Another home stand commences Sept. 8 versus Notre Dame de Namur.

Starting with a bang. Instant success has been the norm for Coach Chuck Sekyra in his first five seasons. Each of his teams have won their opening games by a combined score of 11-1, so the 4-0 win over Hawaii Hilo went according to form. The Falcons controlled possession and were rarely threatened, evidenced by the 24-1 count in shots. It was more of the same in the first hour against Humboldt State, with the regulars going ahead 4-0 after 51 minutes. The ‘Jacks’ goal came against a unit largely comprised of young reserves.

Early Bird. The early word on Sarah Martinez (Sr., Bothell, Wa./Cedar Park Christian) was that she was poised for her best season to date, and when the subject is a past All-American that says plenty. As advertised, Martinez looked very sharp in the first two games, grabbing five goals. She notched her second career hat trick against Humboldt before leaving the game in the 60th minute, and had scored twice versus Hilo, including a the season’s first goal after less than three minutes of play. With seven career game-winners, Martinez is one away from tying the record set by Shannon Lovejoy. She’s also within seven goals of Lovejoy’s standard of 42.

Offensive production. It took nearly five games for the Falcons to reach eight goals a year ago, so the offense seems well-oiled. There’s the signature ball control, but also plenty of quick strikes on goal. Forty shots produced eight goals, plus 20 opponent saves. Besides Martinez, Meredith Teague (Jr., Redmond, Wa./Bellevue Christian) and Janae Godoy (Jr., Yakima, Wa./West Valley) hit the back of the net in the opener. Kayla Stiegemeier (So., Rathdrum, Id./Lakeland) scored first against Humboldt contest. Sekyra is eager to see his outside backs press forward and right back Jessica Gerstmann (Sr., Puyallup, Wa./Cascade Christian) collected two assists versus the Hawaiians. Teague, Stiegemeier and Shannon Oakes (Jr., Boise, Id./Boise) also contributed two assists.

The business end. Much of the time, the SPU back four operated from a vantage point near the halfway line, but when challenged they responded with solid tackles and beating opponents to loose balls. Starting keeper Jesslyn Rahm (So., Eugene, Or./South Eugene) was required to make only one pedestrian save in her 140 minutes. Centerbacks Claire Grubbs (Jr., Sterling, Va./Potomac Falls) and Becca Woods (Fr., Beaverton, Or.) largely kept the action in front of them, with Gerstmann and left back Katie Taylor (Jr., Vancouver, Wa./Colum. River) doing most of their running toward the offensive end. A poised Kara Hamby (Sr., Spokane, Wa./Mead) won lots of balls in the middle and quickly re-started the attack.

Roster depth. Sekyra used all 21 available players in the first two games. Among the first to come off the bench were forwards Amanda Johnson (Fr., Duvall, Wa./Cedarcrest) and Mallorie Gerstmann (Fr., Puyallup, Wa./Cascade Christian); defender Jeanne Webster (Sr., Bothell, Wa.) and midfielders Karen Hosler (Fr., Portland, Or./Sunset) and Alex Butler (Jr., Spokane, Wa./Gonzaga-Prep/Wash. St.). Maddie Dickinson (Fr., Vancouver, Wa./Skyview) spelled Rahm for 40 minutes.

Throw-ins. Martinez appeared ready to break the logjam for the single-game goals record against Humboldt before being lifted by Sekyra. It was the eighth hat trick in the program's existence and first since Martinez vs. Western Oregon in 2005. Her seven total points vs. Humboldt ranks second to the eight by Michelle Sanders in 2002...Saturday's game opens a doubleheader which has the SPU men facing San Francisco State at 7...The Falcons moved back into the national top 10 for the first time since Sept. 28, 2006. They had been 12th in the preseason poll... Seattle Pacific is unbeaten (12-0-2) in its last 14 non-conference home games, dating to 2004.

Coaching Staff. Chuck Sekyra has guided the Falcons to the NCAA tournament in each of his first four seasons. Sekyra was voted 2005 region coach of the year after taking SPU to the national title game. He is a three-time GNAC coach of the year, and has won three conference championships. Sekyra has played on two NCAA championship teams at Seattle Pacific from 1985-88. He and was assistant men’s coach from 1998-99 and assistant women’s coach at Washington from 2000-02. Goalkeeper coach Kevin Blokker returns for his fifth year on the staff after previously coaching at San Francisco (his alma mater), Wyoming, Fresno State and Kansas. Chalise Baysa, Oregon’s all-time scoring leader, is in her fourth season on the staff. Arby Busey is in his second year. He was Idaho’s head coach from 2002-04 and an assistant at Villanova, his alma mater, in 2005.

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.

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.