Friday, October 25
Seattle, WA
8:00 PM MT
Air Force Academy
at
Seattle U
Photo by: Bill Evans
Men's Soccer Takes on Seattle U, San Jose State this Weekend
10/24/2019 10:53:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Air Force men's soccer will take on the WAC front-runners, Seattle U, Friday night at 7 p.m. PT
THIS WEEKEND: Air Force continues Western Athletic Conference action on the road as they take on Seattle U, 7 p.m. PT on Friday (Oct. 25) and San Jose State, 1 p.m. PT on Sunday (Oct. 27).
THE SERIES: Air Force will be taking on Seattle U in the 13th all-time meeting between the programs; the Falcons lead the series 6-4-2. Air Force hasn't lost to Seattle since 2015, going 3-0-1 in the last four meetings; however, the Falcons are 1-2-2 when playing the Red Hawks in Seattle. Last season, Air Force downed Seattle U, 2-1, at the Academy. The Falcons are 4-2-2 when playing Seattle in October.
San Jose State is one of Air Force's longest running series with 40 meetings between the teams. The Spartans lead the all-time series, 23-12-5. Air Force has won the last two regular-season meetings, 4-0, in both games, but SJSU handed the Falcons a bitter loss in between those matches, beating Air Force 1-0 and eliminating the Falcons from the WAC tournament in 2017.
UP NEXT: The Falcons return home for the final week of home field advantage, hosting Grand Canyon on Halloween (Thurs., Oct. 31) and UNLV on Saturday (Nov. 2). The matches are slated for 6 pm and 1 pm MT, respectively. Saturday's match will serve as Senior Day as the Falcons honor three seniors in team captain Nick Blessing, his twin brother Ben Blessing and Julian Flores.
LAST TIME OUT: Last Saturday, a second half surge lifted Air Force to a 3-1 win over Western Athletic Conference foe, Houston Baptist (3-9, 1-5 WAC), at Sorrels Field on the campus of HBU. Giuliano Daniel, Quinn Matulis and Luke Hill scored the goals in the Falcons' second-straight league win.
Air Force out shot HBU, 10-8, extending the Falcons to a five-match streak of outshooting their opponents. The shooting disparity was prevalent in shots on frame as the Falcons put five shots on goal to the Huskies' one. Giuliano Daniel, Tristan Trager and Lathan Spadafora led the Falcons with two shots apiece on the night.
The Falcons' defense, anchored by team captain Nick Blessing and teammates Jared Dove and Reece Cooke who registered 90-minutes of action each, kept the HBU offense at bay, preventing the Huskies from rallying back into the match in the second half. Sophomore keeper Kainoa Likewise earned his fifth win in goal this season.
SHOTS, SHOTS, SHOTS: The Falcons have out shot every league opponent on WAC slate so far this season, 86 to 53. The greatest disparity in shots (22-14) came in the overtime loss to California Baptist, while the closest margin in shots (10-9) came in the 3-1 win over Incarnate Word. Sophomores Trager and Spadafora lead the squad with 24 shots each, but freshman teammate Quinn Matulis is the most efficient with a .546 shooting accuracy on 11 shots.
AROUND THE LEAGUE: We could see the first tickets punched for next month's WAC tournament with a busy schedule of games. UT Rio Grande Valley and UIW head to the west coast to take on California Baptist and CSU Bakersfield. UNLV and Grand Canyon play host to Kansas City and Houston Baptist. Finally, Air Force and Utah Valley travel to San José State and Seattle U.
Seattle U continues to lead the WAC in shots (240), points (82), goals (28), assists (26), shutouts (7) and corner kicks (101). UT Rio Grande Valley has the least goals allowed (10) while Grand Canyon holds the top goals against average (0.85). California Baptist is the leader in saves with 73.
Individually, UVU's Blake Frischknecht is the leader in shots (54), goals (9) and game-winning goals (5). SU's Declan McGlynn is the leader in points (19) while UTRGV's Angel Lopez is the assists leader (6). In net, GCU's George Tasouris holds the top spot in goals against average (0.85) and is tied with SU's Akili Kasim and UTRGV's Andy Rios for the lead in shutouts (6). CBU's Albert Escuin is the leader in both saves (73) and save percentage (.820).
In WAC-only play, Seattle U holds the top spot in shots (109), points (51), assists (17) and corner kicks (43) and is tied with Air Force for the lead in goals (17). Utah Valley has the least goals allowed (3) and also leads in goals against average (0.50). California Baptist is the leader in saves (37).
Individually, UVU's Frischknecht is the leader in shots and game-winning goals (3). SU's James Morris holds the lead in goals (6) and is tied with teammate McGlynn for the lead in points (14). McGlynn is also tied with AF's Tristan Trager for the assists lead with four each. In goal, UVU's Mitch Jensenholds the top goals against average (0.25) and save percentage (.917). CBU's Escuin is the saves leader (37) and UTRGV's Rios has a league-best four shutouts in WAC play.
The WAC has three teams in the top 100 of the first RPI rankings released by the NCAA. UT Rio Grande Valley leads the way at 48th, followed by Seattle U in 66th and Utah Valley at 70th.
This week's United Soccer Coaches' Far West Regional Rankings feature three teams from the WAC. Seattle U moved up one spot to fifth, Utah Valley fell three spots to eighth and UT Rio Grande Valley dropped one spot to 10th.
THE SERIES: Air Force will be taking on Seattle U in the 13th all-time meeting between the programs; the Falcons lead the series 6-4-2. Air Force hasn't lost to Seattle since 2015, going 3-0-1 in the last four meetings; however, the Falcons are 1-2-2 when playing the Red Hawks in Seattle. Last season, Air Force downed Seattle U, 2-1, at the Academy. The Falcons are 4-2-2 when playing Seattle in October.
San Jose State is one of Air Force's longest running series with 40 meetings between the teams. The Spartans lead the all-time series, 23-12-5. Air Force has won the last two regular-season meetings, 4-0, in both games, but SJSU handed the Falcons a bitter loss in between those matches, beating Air Force 1-0 and eliminating the Falcons from the WAC tournament in 2017.
UP NEXT: The Falcons return home for the final week of home field advantage, hosting Grand Canyon on Halloween (Thurs., Oct. 31) and UNLV on Saturday (Nov. 2). The matches are slated for 6 pm and 1 pm MT, respectively. Saturday's match will serve as Senior Day as the Falcons honor three seniors in team captain Nick Blessing, his twin brother Ben Blessing and Julian Flores.
LAST TIME OUT: Last Saturday, a second half surge lifted Air Force to a 3-1 win over Western Athletic Conference foe, Houston Baptist (3-9, 1-5 WAC), at Sorrels Field on the campus of HBU. Giuliano Daniel, Quinn Matulis and Luke Hill scored the goals in the Falcons' second-straight league win.
Air Force out shot HBU, 10-8, extending the Falcons to a five-match streak of outshooting their opponents. The shooting disparity was prevalent in shots on frame as the Falcons put five shots on goal to the Huskies' one. Giuliano Daniel, Tristan Trager and Lathan Spadafora led the Falcons with two shots apiece on the night.
The Falcons' defense, anchored by team captain Nick Blessing and teammates Jared Dove and Reece Cooke who registered 90-minutes of action each, kept the HBU offense at bay, preventing the Huskies from rallying back into the match in the second half. Sophomore keeper Kainoa Likewise earned his fifth win in goal this season.
SHOTS, SHOTS, SHOTS: The Falcons have out shot every league opponent on WAC slate so far this season, 86 to 53. The greatest disparity in shots (22-14) came in the overtime loss to California Baptist, while the closest margin in shots (10-9) came in the 3-1 win over Incarnate Word. Sophomores Trager and Spadafora lead the squad with 24 shots each, but freshman teammate Quinn Matulis is the most efficient with a .546 shooting accuracy on 11 shots.
AROUND THE LEAGUE: We could see the first tickets punched for next month's WAC tournament with a busy schedule of games. UT Rio Grande Valley and UIW head to the west coast to take on California Baptist and CSU Bakersfield. UNLV and Grand Canyon play host to Kansas City and Houston Baptist. Finally, Air Force and Utah Valley travel to San José State and Seattle U.
Seattle U continues to lead the WAC in shots (240), points (82), goals (28), assists (26), shutouts (7) and corner kicks (101). UT Rio Grande Valley has the least goals allowed (10) while Grand Canyon holds the top goals against average (0.85). California Baptist is the leader in saves with 73.
Individually, UVU's Blake Frischknecht is the leader in shots (54), goals (9) and game-winning goals (5). SU's Declan McGlynn is the leader in points (19) while UTRGV's Angel Lopez is the assists leader (6). In net, GCU's George Tasouris holds the top spot in goals against average (0.85) and is tied with SU's Akili Kasim and UTRGV's Andy Rios for the lead in shutouts (6). CBU's Albert Escuin is the leader in both saves (73) and save percentage (.820).
In WAC-only play, Seattle U holds the top spot in shots (109), points (51), assists (17) and corner kicks (43) and is tied with Air Force for the lead in goals (17). Utah Valley has the least goals allowed (3) and also leads in goals against average (0.50). California Baptist is the leader in saves (37).
Individually, UVU's Frischknecht is the leader in shots and game-winning goals (3). SU's James Morris holds the lead in goals (6) and is tied with teammate McGlynn for the lead in points (14). McGlynn is also tied with AF's Tristan Trager for the assists lead with four each. In goal, UVU's Mitch Jensenholds the top goals against average (0.25) and save percentage (.917). CBU's Escuin is the saves leader (37) and UTRGV's Rios has a league-best four shutouts in WAC play.
The WAC has three teams in the top 100 of the first RPI rankings released by the NCAA. UT Rio Grande Valley leads the way at 48th, followed by Seattle U in 66th and Utah Valley at 70th.
This week's United Soccer Coaches' Far West Regional Rankings feature three teams from the WAC. Seattle U moved up one spot to fifth, Utah Valley fell three spots to eighth and UT Rio Grande Valley dropped one spot to 10th.
Players Mentioned
Goalkeeper
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Midfield
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Defender
/ Men's Soccer
Goalkeeper
/ Men's Soccer
Midfield
/ Men's Soccer
Forward
/ Men's Soccer
Midfielder
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