Nov. 8, 2004
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The final weekend of WCC action will determine the conference champion as both Loyola Marymount and San Francisco are in the running. With a win against Santa Clara, LMU will claim its
first-ever soccer championship. USF needs an LMU loss and to sweep its weekend games to win the title. The two teams could tie if LMU loses and USF gains a victory and a tie over the weekend. The conference champion would then be decided on tie-breakers. Portland's Luis Robles was named WCC Player of the Week for his efforts against No. 6 California and No. 15 Santa Clara. Robles collected his seventh shutout of the season in a 0-0 draw at Cal. He followed up this performance by helping to preserve Portland's 2-0 haltime lead against Santa Clara. Robles collected six second half saves in the 2-1 win at Buck Shaw Stadium. LMU's Armando Melendez was named WCC Player of the Month for his play in October. Melendez led LMU to a 7-2-1 month and first place in the WCC standings.
WCC Men's Soccer Player of the Month
Armando Melendez, Loyola Marymount
The junior from Los Angeles, Calif. led Loyola Marymount to a 7-2-1 record during October and a 7-1-1 mark in WCC play. Melendez netted three goals and handed out four assists as the Lions have been in first place for the entire month, and have finished the first half of conference play unbeaten. Melendez collected game-winning goals in victories over San Diego and then-No. 2 Santa Clara. The midfielder assisted on game-winning goals against San Francisco and Portland. Melendez set-up Sean Rhynard in LMU's key 2-1 victory over USF and then found LJ Reinhardt for a 1-0 win against Portland. Melendez leads the WCC in points during conference matches and is tied for second in assists in conference games.
2004 WCC Player of the Week
Luis Robles, Portland
The Sierra Vista, Ariz. product collected his seventh shutout in a 0-0 draw against No. 6 California and then preserved Portland's 2-0 halftime lead for a 2-1 victory over No. 15 Santa Clara. Robles made seven saves against California, including three during the overtime periods. The sophomore totaled six second half saves against Santa Clara and seven total. For the weekend, Robles played in 200 minutes, allowed one goal, posted one shutout and recorded 14 saves. Robles now has 12 career shutouts, which places him fifth on the Pilot charts.
Upcoming Schedule
Nov. 11
San Diego at UCLA - 7:00 PM
Nov. 12
*Gonzaga at Saint Mary's - 3:00 PM
*Portland at San Francisco - 7:00 PM
*Loyola Marymount at Santa Clara - 7:00 PM
Nov. 14
*Gonzaga at San Francisco - 1:00 PM
*San Diego at Santa Clara - 3:00 PM
*Portland at Saint Mary's - 3:00 PM
Team Notes
Gonzaga Bulldogs (6-12-0 / 2-8-0 WCC)
Gonzaga dropped a 2-0 contest to Santa Clara in its lone match of the week ... Arni Pjetursson accounted for two of Gonzaga's three shots ... Gonzaga is now 0-6-1 at Buck Shaw Stadium ... Gonzaga has been shutout in 11 of its 12 losses ... Dade Smith made his third start in goal and recorded four saves ... The Bulldogs will travel to Saint Mary's and San Francisco this week to finish out the regular season.
Loyola Marymount (10-6-3 / 8-2-1 WCC)
Loyola Marymount inched closer to its first-ever soccer championship with a weekend split ... LMU lost to San Francisco, 2-1, but rebounded to defeat Saint Mary's, 2-1 in overtime ... A win at Santa Clara on Nov. 12 will clinch the championship for LMU ... Against USF, Diego Barrera gave the Lions' a 1-0 lead as Armando Melendez assisted on the play ... USF would tie the game and then score the game-winner at the 69:19 mark ... Against Saint Mary's, freshman Nick Blanco netted a pair of goals in the Lions' 2-1 overtime victory ... Blanco had the game-winner in the 103rd minute of overtime as Bobby Burling and Jimmy Burling collected assists ... LMU outshot SMC, 18-9 ... B. Burling assisted on Blanco's first goal of the match ... LMU is set receive an NCAA berth for its fourth straight season ... Last year, the Lions lost to Santa Clara, 1-0 in a first round NCAA match ... Loyola Marymount finishes off the regular season with a road match at Santa Clara.
Portland Pilots (10-6-2 / 5-4-1 WCC)
Portland came away with two impressive road results ... The Pilots' played No. 6 California to a 0-0 draw and defeated Santa Clara, 2-1 ... Goalie Luis Robles excelled in both matches as the sophomore made seven saves against the Bears with three coming in overtime ... Robles posted his seventh shutout of the season in the draw ... Against Santa Clara, Robles totaled another seven saves as six came in the second half ... Portland received two first half goals by Matthew Dallman and Chris Sanders to hold on for the one-goal victory ... The score marked Dallman's fifth on the season and his third in six matches ... Sanders recorded his fourth goal ... Alejandro Salazar provided assists on both goals and leads the team with seven ... For his weekend efforts, College Soccer News selected Robles as a member of its team of the week ... Portland finishes off the regular season with road matches at San Francisco and Saint Mary's.
Saint Mary's Gaels (4-9-5 / 1-7-2 WCC)
Saint Mary's gained its first WCC and road victory of the year with a 2-1 win over San Diego ... SMC received two first half goals as Jason Stanwood and Derek Youpel found the net ... Stanwood netted the first score of his career, while Youpel notched his team-leading fifth goal ... Matt Fitzgerald assisted on the Stanwood score, while David Vedder had the assist on Youpel's goal ... Brian Mason collected five saves against 21 shots for his third victory ... Saint Mary's concludes its season with home matches against Gonzaga and Portland.
San Diego Toreros (7-8-3 / 4-5-2 WCC)
San Diego split its final two home matches of the season against Saint Mary's and San Francisco ... Michael Case netted USD's lone goal against SMC for his sixth this season ... Ryan Guy assisted on Caso's score ... USD turned a late 1-0 USF lead into a 2-1 overtime victory ... With under three minutes to play, Eric Pohl sent a free kick to the far side and Kevin Wilson connected on a header at the 87:39 mark ... USD had pulled everyone into the box, including goalie Lance Friesz ... Jan Prochazka had the game-winner in overtime in the 102nd minute of play ... Wilson's goal marked his first of the season ... USD outshot USF, 12-2 in the second half ... San Diego plays at UCLA and Santa Clara to end regular season play.
San Francisco Dons (12-4-1 / 7-3-0 WCC)
San Francisco extended its winning streak to seven with a 2-1 win over Loyola Marymount and then suffered a tough 2-1 loss to San Diego in overtime ... Aaron Chandler recorded his sixth game-winner against LMU with a score at the 69:19 mark ... Chandler leads the WCC in scoring with 24 points and 11 goals ... Cameron Kolovos evened the match at 1-1 with a score at the 54:59 mark ... Jordan Keyes and Brandon McDonald assisted on Kolovos' score, which came on a bicycle kick ... Luke Holmes assisted on Chandler's game-winner ... Against San Diego, USF took a 1-0 lead into the final minutes of play, but surrendered its lead as USD tied the match at the 87:39 mark ... With 12 wins, the Dons are only one win shy of USF's 1993 team, which went 13-4-4 and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals ... USF will finish out the regular season with home matches against Portland and Gonzaga.
Santa Clara Broncos (13-5-0 / 6-4-0 WCC)
Santa Clara split a pair of home matches with a 2-0 victory over Gonzaga and a 2-1 loss to Portland ... After opening conference play with four straight wins, SCU has gone 2-4 in its last six matches ... Against Gonzaga, Ryan Wolfe and Kelechi Igwe accounted for the Broncos' scoring ... Igwe assisted on Wolfe's first goal of the season ... Kent Harkness and Christopher Moreo combined for SCU's ninth shutout this season ... Santa Clara allowed two first half goals to Portland and failed to convert 18 shots as well as nine corner kicks ... Jason Cunliffe scored SCU's only goal as Peter Lowry assisted ... Santa Clara will conclude regular season play at home with matches against Loyola Marymount and San Diego.
Games to Watch
Portland at San Francisco-FRIDAY, November 12 at 7:00 pm PST
San Francisco must win to have any shot at capturing the WCC title from first-place Loyola Marymount. USF defeated LMU, 2-1 on Friday, but couldn't complete the weekend sweep as San Diego came away with a 2-1 victory. San Francisco needs an LMU loss coupled with two weekend victories to overtake the Lions and claim the championship. Portland sits in fourth place after a weekend draw against No. 6 California and a 2-1 win over No. 15 Santa Clara. Portland is 4-2-1 in its last seven matches. Goalie Luis Robles recorded his seventh shutout against California, the 12th of his career.
Loyola Marymount at Santa Clara-FRIDAY, November 12 at 7:00 pm PST
The scenario is simple for Loyola Marymount, a win against Santa Clara clinches the school's first-ever soccer championship. The picture becomes muddled with a loss as LMU would then have to hope USF falters down the stretch. At 13-5, Santa Clara remains a strong candidate for an NCAA berth and will look to lock up its position with a pair of weekend victories. Medhi Ballouchy paces SCU in scoring with 13 points, while freshman Peter Lowry leads in goals with four. The Broncos place second to LMU in scoring with 26 goals. The Lions top the WCC with 35 scores.
