#15 WOU MEN'S SOCCER (10-2-1, 6-1, 18 points)
GNAC STANDINGS | GNAC STATS | WOU STATS | WOU STAT RANKINGS
 
SCHEDULE
THURSDAY
vs. Saint Martin's (0-13, 0-7, 0 points), noon
Monmouth, OR | WOU Turf Field
SATURDAY
at Simon Fraser (2-8-2, 1-5, 3 points), 10 a.m.
Salem, OR | Sparks Field (Willamette University)
Live Stream & Stat Links
 
THE WOLVES HEADING INTO THE WEEK
The 15th-ranked Wolves had their 11-match unbeaten streak snapped Saturday in a 2-1 loss at home to Montana State Billings - two days after defeating Northwest Nazarene 4-1.

WOU continues to be one of the top scoring teams in the nation - ranking 14thin in goals per game (2.54) and 17th in points per game (6.85) along with ranking fourth in shot accuracy (0.563) - first in the GNAC in all those categories. WOU also leads the GNaC in goals against average at 1.08. What makes the Wolves dangerous is the skill to score from so many players with nine WOU players with multiple goals including three with five or more goals. Yahir Ocampo Navarro leads the team with six goals and 14 points. Jacob Garcia and Evan Huber each have a team-high four assists while Diego Andrade and Alex Grignon have three assists apiece.

THE OPPONENTS HEADING INTO THE WEEK
Saint Martin's winless streak moved to 17 matches and its losing streak to 13 games with a 4-0 home loss to Montana State Billings.

Simon Fraser, the 2023 GNAC Champion, saw its losing streak move to three as it fell to Western Washington 3-1 at home on Saturday.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Saint Martin's
ALL-TIME: 4-1
STREAK: Won 4
LAST WIN: Oct. 17, 2024 - 6-2 in Lacey, Washington
LAST LOSS: Oct. 1, 2022 - 5-2 in Lacey, Washington
LAST DRAW: N/A

Simon Fraser
ALL-TIME: 1-3-1
STREAK: Won 1
LAST WIN: Oct. 10, 2024 - 3-0 in Monmouth, Oregon
LAST LOSS: Oct. 15, 2023 - 3-0 in Burnaby, British Columbia
LAST DRAW: Sept. 28, 2023 - 2-2 in Monmouth, Oregon
 
NOTES
Wolves drop five spots to No. 15 ... POLL
The Western Oregon men's soccer team for the first time in five weeks moved back in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll after its 11-match unbeaten streak was snapped on Saturday with the Wolves falling five spots back to No. 15. These are the first five weeks WOU has been ranked in the program's three-year history.

Wolves national rankings in 2024:
Oct. 1 - #25
Oct. 8 - #24
Oct. 15 - #15
Oct. 22 - #10
Oct. 29 - #15

Let's go streaking!
While the streaks were put to an end, WOU set program records for:

• Unbeaten streak: 11 (10-0-1)
• Win streak: 7
• Home unbeaten streak: 11 (9-0-2) / a span of 723 days between home losses

Wolves selected GNAC Team of the Week
The then-No. 24 Western Oregon men's soccer team outscored defending GNAC champ Simon Fraser and Seattle Pacific by a combined score of 7-1 during the week of Oct. 10-12 and was named the GNAC Team of the Week on Oct. 14. The Wolves with the victories moved their unbeaten streak to nine games (8-0-1) and their winning streak to five games - both records for the third-year program. During the unbeaten streak, WOU has outscored its opponents 22-6. WOU's 3-0 shutout win over the Red Leafs on Thursday moved their home unbeaten streak to 10 matches (8-0-2).

Schlaefli named GNAC Defensive Player of the Week ... again (Oct. 14)
Western Oregon goalkeeper Andre Schlaefli for the second week in a row was named the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 14. The senior from Houston allowed just one goal, picked up nine saves - including one on a penalty kick - as the 24th-ranked Wolves defeated Simon Fraser 3-0 on Thursday and Seattle Pacific 4-1 on Saturday. In the win over SFU, Schlaefli had his fourth shutout of the season and had three saves (one on a PK) to help WOU win 3-0. Against SPU, the senior faced a season-high 22 shots and made six saves in helping the Wolves win 4-1.

Schlaefli named GNAC Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 7)
Western Oregon goalkeeper Andre Schlaefli was named the GNAC Men's Soccer Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 7. Schlaefli allowed one goal and had seven saves while facing 20 shots in helping the 25th-ranked Wolves start GNAC play 2-0 and move their unbeaten streak to seven (6-0-1). Schlaefli - a 2022 All-American for St. Mary's (TX) - picked up his third shutout of the year in a 1-0 win over Western Washington at home Thursday, collecting three saves. The senior allowed just one goal and had four saves in the Wolves' 3-1 win at MSU Billings.

Divano named GNAC Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 23)
Western Oregon's Michael Divano was named the GNAC Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 23 after a breakout week for the freshman. Divano scored three goals (on just five shots) in helping WOU go 2-0-1 on the week and move the Wolves' unbeaten streak to five. Divano scored the first goal of the game in a 2-0 win at home over Hawaii Hilo on Monday, Sept. 16, - a Vulcans team that is now nationally ranked. In WOU's 3-1 win over Newman on Sunday, Divano had his first collegiate multi-goal game - scoring two goals in the first 16 minutes of the match to propel WOU to victory.

Ocampo Navarro named GNAC Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 16)
Western Oregon sophomore Yahir Ocampo Navarro was named the GNAC Men's Soccer Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 16 after scoring two goals in helping the Wolves defeat Azusa Pacific on the road 3-2 on Sept 12. Both goals for Ocampo Navarro, an All-GNAC First Teamer and all-region player as a freshman last season, came via penalty kicks and in the second half - including the game-winner in the 73rd minute. It is Ocampo Navarro's first multi-goal game of his young collegiate career.

Taking care of business at home under Behonick
With a win over Simon Fraser on Oct. 10 in Monmouth, the Wolves are now 8-0-2 at home under second-year head coach Michael Behonick. WOU has outscored its opponents 17-7 in those nine matches. As of Wednesday (Oct. 9), it's been 713 days since the Wolves last lost a home match (Nov. 3, 2022).

Villalobos becomes first WOU player to score goal in all three seasons
WOU junior Abraham Villalobos made a little history with his goal against Jessup (CA) on Sept. 7 as he became the first player to score a goal in three different seasons for the three-year-old Wolves program. The Salem now has five career goals (fourth on the all-time list) and 14 career points (also fourth on the WOU all-time list).

Wolves picked second in GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll
The Western Oregon men's soccer team picked up a pair of first-place votes and was voted to finish second in the GNAC Men's Soccer Preseason Poll. The Wolves - entering year three as a program - snagged two of the five first-place votes and finished with 41 points - two points behind Simon Fraser (which collected the other five first-place votes). Seattle Pacific and Western Washington tied for third with 32 points followed by Northwest Nazarene (25), Montana State Billings (13) and Saint Martin's (10).

The Wolves went from a 2-13-2 team (1-10-1 in conference) in their first season in 2022 to 11-3-3 overall and 8-1-3 in GNAC play last season in head coach Michael Behonick's first season at the helm. WOU finished just short of a GNAC title as with games in the conference canceled due to inclement weather, the standings came down to points per match. WOU finished at 2.25 points per match with its 8-1-3 conference record, .02 points behind Simon Fraser's 2.27 with a 8-2-1 record.