#14 WOU MEN'S SOCCER (12-2-1, 6-1, 24 points)
GNAC STANDINGS | GNAC STATS | WOU STATS | WOU STAT RANKINGS
 
SCHEDULE
SATURDAY
vs. Seattle Pacific (6-5-4, 3-3-3, 12 points), 11 a.m.
Salem, OR | Sparks Field (Willamette University)
Live Stream & Stat Links
 
THE WOLVES HEADING INTO THE WEEK
The 14th-ranked Wolves continue their march toward a first GNAC title - and NCAA Championships berth that comes with it - in just the program's third year of existence. Following 4-1 win over both Saint Maritn's and Simon Fraser here are the GNAC standings:
 

SCHOOL	POINTS	Conf	CONF %	Overall	OVR %	Home	Away	Neutral	Streak	L10
Western Oregon	24	8-1	.889	12-2-1	.833	5-1	5-1-1	2-0	W2	9-1
Western Washington	22	7-2-1	.750	9-4-3	.656	6-2-1	3-2-1	0-0-1	W7	7-2-1
Northwest Nazarene	15	4-3-3	.550	5-7-4	.438	3-2-1	2-4-2	0-1-1	W1	4-3-3
Montana State Billings	15	4-2-3	.611	5-4-6	.533	2-2-2	2-1-4	1-1	T2	4-2-4
Seattle Pacific	12	3-3-3	.500	6-5-4	.533	2-4-3	3-1-1	1-0	T1	4-3-3
Simon Fraser	6	2-7	.222	3-10-2	.267	1-3	1-6-1	1-1-1	L2	2-8
Saint Martin's	0	0-10	.000	0-16	.000	0-7	0-8	0-1	L16	0-10

Win = 3 points, Tie = 1 point

The easiest way to think of how WOU can clinch is second-place Western Washington has two matches left and can reach a max of 28 points. WOU has three matches left and to get to at least 29 points, WOU needs either two wins or a win and two draws (though one of those matches is against Western Washington).

The Wolves can clinch Saturday with a win combined with a Western Washington draw or loss at Montana State Billings (WOU would be at 27 points, WWU would be at 23 or 22 points with one match left - meaning the Vikings could catch the Wolves). The WWU/MSUB match starts at 5 p.m. (PT).

Earlier this season (Oct. 12), the Wolves defeated the Falcons 4-1 in Seattle in a match that actually saw Seattle Pacific outshoot WOU 22-10 (though only 8-6 on shots on goal).

THE OPPONENTS HEADING INTO THE WEEK
Seattle Pacific is coming off a 2-2 draw at MSUB Thursday as the Falcons are 0-2-2 in their last four.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Seattle Pacific
ALL-TIME: 2-2-1
STREAK: Won 2
LAST WIN: Oct, 12, 2024 - 4-1 in Seattle
LAST LOSS: Nov. 3, 2022 - 1-0 in Monmouth
LAST DRAW: Nov. 4, 2023 - 3-3 in Monmouth 
 
NOTES
Wolves move up a spot to No. 14 ... POLL
The Western Oregon men's soccer team moved up a spot to No. 14 in this week's United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll. These are the first six 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
Nov. 5 - #14

Let's go streaking!
This season the Wolves set 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

Luna named GNAC Offensive Player of the Week - (Nov. 4)
Western Oregon senior Alexis Luna paced the 15th-ranked Wolves with three goals in their two matches this week and was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week on Nov. 4. The senior from Salem had three goals on four shots taken in helping the Wolves to 4-1 wins over both Saint Martin's and Simon Fraser this week. Against SMU on Thursday, Luna had two goals on three shots - scoring his goals 4 minutes, 35 seconds apart to turn a 1-0 WOU lead into a 3-0 advantage just 30 minutes into the match. Luna's goal Saturday against SFU was key as the Red Leafs had cut the Wolves' lead to 2-1 in the 58th minute before Luna scored less than four minutes later to give WOU a more comfortable advantage.

Luna's brace (two goals) on Thursday was the ninth time in the Wolves' three-year history that a player has scored two goals in a game (he's the seventh player to do it) - tied for the school record. The record of two goals in a game has been tied five times this season - all by different players (Luna, Yahir Ocampo Navarro, Michael Divano, Abraham Villalobos, Alejandro Velasco - who also did it in 2023).

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.

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.