Oct. 3, 2000
Friday, Oct. 6 Sunday, Oct. 8 California at Washington 2:15 p.m. Husky Soccer Field, Seattle, Wash. THIS WEEK: The No. 12 Washington men's soccer team (6-3-0), winners of six of its last seven games, hits the road for a Pac-10 Conference match against undefeated and fourth-ranked Stanford (8-0-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at New Maloney Field. The Huskies then turn right back around and come home for a Sunday match versus California (2-7-0) at 2:15 p.m. at Husky Soccer Field. The Sunday contest is a doubleheader, following the UW-Cal women's game at 12 noon.
This Week in the Polls
Soccer America
Soccer Times Series History: Washington owns a 14-8-0 record against Stanford and has a history of close games with the Cardinal. The last five meetings, including an NCAA Tournament game in `97, have all been decided by one goal. The Huskies are 3-2 in that span, and won a 1-0 game in Seattle in the most recent meeting last season. Washington leads the series with California, 14-5-4, and has won the last two games. The Huskies posted a 2-1 overtime victory in Seattle in 1999. Dean Wurzberger on the Weekend: "Stanford presents our biggest challenge to date. Their record speaks for itself. They are scoring goals in large numbers and conceding none. That translates into a quality opponent. We are playing on the road and will be up against their home crowd. We're going to have to bring our best game to have a chance at getting a win. "The series history has traditionally been close games, so that should be on our side. Our team gets fired up to play Stanford. If you look at the last five years, it's been all one goal games. That suggests a close contest. They have been scoring multiple goals and haven't had a close game, other than San Jose State (1-1). Hopefully, we'll bring the effort to make it a close game. "It's going to be a quick turnaround, coming right back home to play California Sunday. We have to jump on a plane and fly back, assess where we are and get ready to go again. Cal is struggling a little bit right now, but again, I think it's going to be a competitive match. "Our game against Oregon State showed that all these Pac-10 games are going to be close. We know we have to play well against all the teams, to have a chance at winning. We still aren't getting the number of goals we hope for, so that means close games. Until we get multiple goal performances out of people, it's going to be that way. I like what I've seen these last few weeks, so with any luck we'll keep going in the conference with positive results." A Quick Look at the Huskies: The Huskies, on a three-game win streak, hit the road for the first time in five outings, for a tough road test at Stanford ... UW is coming off the first-ever Pac-10 Conference victory as it posted a 1-0 win over northwest rival Oregon State ... sophomore reserve Dayo Oyetuga (Everett, Wash.) scored for the Huskies, at 59:48 into the match ... junior midfielder Zach Kingsley (Spokane, Wash.) continues his hot streak, earning the assist on Oyetuga's goal after he sent a cross from the right side to set up the score. Kingsley, from Shadle Park High, scored a pair of goals in two games last weekend. For Oyetuga, it was his third career goal and first this season ... he is the eight different Husky to score in a balanced attack this season - Ben Somoza, Bryn Ritchie, Kai Carroll, Zach Kingsley and Trevor Frobose each have two goals apiece ... Carroll leads the field with 24 shots so far. A Look at Stanford and Cal: Stanford is undefeated in nine games, with a tie against San Jose State two weeks ago ... the Cardinal has given up just won goal all season, against SJSU, and is averaging 4.2 goals per game ... Scott Leber leads the attack with nine goals in nine games, along with three assists ... Cal is on a four-game losing skid, with its last victory a 3-1 win over UCSB, Sept. 17 ... Kendall Simmons and Chris Roner each have three goals apiece for the Bears. The Comforts of Home: Washington has posted a stellar 4-1-0 mark in games at Husky Soccer Field this season. The lone setback came at the hands of 1999 Final Four participant Santa Clara, a 2-0 loss back on Sept. 16. Since then the Huskies have reeled off three wins in row. Dawg Bites: Sophomore Chad Olsen has played every minute of every game in goal for the Huskies ... UW has taken 166 shots in nine games so far, an average of 18.44 per game ... opponents have attempted just 71 shots ... with the introduction of the new Pac-10 league schedule, this weekend marks the first time UW will play a road game Friday night, turn around and host a conference match on Sunday ... Against Ranked Opponents: Washington stood up to the test in its first game against a top 10 opponent this season. The Huskies knocked off Fullerton, ranked sixth in NSCAA Coaches Poll, by a score of 2-1 in overtime ... the Huskies opened the 2000 season on the road and suffered losses to then No. 13 Creighton (2-0) and No. 21 SW Missouri State (3-0). Leading the Dawgs: Dean Wurzberger enters his ninth year at UW as the winningest coach in Washington soccer history. He owns a 113-38-18 record in his tenure at UW and is 121-46-23 in his 10 year head coaching career. He has guided the Huskies to six NCAA Tournament appearances and three MPSF titles, including the last two. Wurzberger was coach of the men's Under-16 National Team in 1998. The Pac-10 Conference: This season marks the beginning of men's soccer within the Pacific-10 Conference. Washington, along with Pac-10 members UCLA, California, Stanford and Oregon State, broke away from the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation to compete in a home-and-away series with each school. The new format hopes to provide greater national visibility and strength of schedule for the member schools, and the payoff should come quickly as league opponent UCLA is currently the top-ranked team in the country while Stanford is fourth in this week's Soccer America Poll. Schools must earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament as the conference will not have an automatic bid, with only five schools in the league. Washington left the MPSF as two-time defending champions, having claimed the federation title in 1998 and `99. Husky head coach Dean Wurzberger was named MPSF Mountain Division Coach of the Year in `99 and senior Wes Hart was player of the year. It's Early, But ... Washington is gunning for a sixth consecutive NCAA Tournament berth this year. Just 10 programs in the nation can boast a current five-year streak of appearing in the postseason tournament. Should the Huskies earn a bid in 2000, they would become one of only nine other programs in the country to match the feat. In all, Washington has made 13 appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Wander the Web: Senior captain Mike Casale (Redmond, Wash./Eastlake) will be featured in a weekly diary on www.gohuskies.com. The diary also runs on http://espn.go.com/ncaa/diary/index.html and features Husky women's goalkeeper Hope Solo as well. Check www.gohuskies.com for information on all 23 sports at Washington. TV SCHEDULE: Washington's schedule features two televised games on Fox Sports Net Northwest. The Huskies' games against Gonzaga (Oct. 27) and at Oregon State (Nov. 5) will be carried on a delayed basis by the regional network. A GLANCE at the HUSKIES: An experienced defense, aggressive midfield and explosive front line define the 2000 Huskies, who will be shooting for a goal only nine other programs in the nation can match - a sixth straight berth in the NCAA Tournament. Despite the loss of three full-time starters- all-American Wes Hart, Rees Bettinger, eighth all-time in UW goals, and first-team all-MPSF defender Morgan McCoy-18 players return from a 1999 season in which Washington won 10 of its final 11 games and bowed out of the NCAA Tournament in the second round to eventual champion Indiana. Four seniors and six juniors, seven of whom started at least half of last year's games, provide ample experience and leadership for the 16 underclassmen. RECAPPING 1999: The Huskies are coming off an outstanding season in which they defended their second Mountain Pacific Sports Federation title, winning 10 of their final 11 games and earning a fifth straight NCAA Tournament bid. They advanced to the second round before falling to eventual champion Indiana, at Indiana.
LOCALLY BORN AND BRED: The state of Washington is turning out stellar soccer players, and UW coach Dean Wurzberger is doing his part to keep them at home. No less than 20 players, two more than last season, on this year's 26-player roster are from the Evergreen State, the highest total in Wurzberger's history with the Dawgs.
Des Moines Jimmy Stark, F
Husky Quick Facts |
