SPOKANE, Wash.- Whitworth will head west this weekend for a pair of key Northwest Conference battles. Five teams remain within two games of the 20th-ranked Pirates (11-2-1 overall, 7-2 NWC) and two of those are coming up next when Whitworth plays at Pacific Lutheran (Saturday) and Puget Sound (Sunday). Both matches are scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m., following women's contests. Click here for the NWC standings. Whitworth is coming off of a 6-0 win over Willamette last Saturday, and a 2-1 victory over Linfield in come-from-behind fashion on Sunday.
Goal Scorer: Whitworth's Caleb Barnhill (Sr., F, Sultan, Wash.) was named Northwest Conference Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week in men's soccer after leading the Pirates to both wins with a goal and an assist in each. He currently leads the Northwest Conference in goals per game (0.71) and in total goals (10). He also leads in total points (22) and has two game-winning goals this season - the only tally in a 1-0 win at Linfield and a late score in a 3-2 win over Pacific Lutheran on September 28th. Prugh and Bulega, too: Team captain John Prugh (Sr., F, Bozeman, Mont.) is also among the NWC scoring leaders. Prugh, who has five goals and four assists this season, is tied with teammate Travis Jette (Sr., D, Missoula, Mont.) for second in the NWC in assists (4) and is seventh in total goals. Elly Bulega (Jr., F, Tacoma, Wash.) is tied for third in the NWC in total goals with six after hitting the match-winner on Sunday vs. Linfield. The Montana Mountain: Bryan Olson (Jr., D, Missoula, Mont.), who has led the Pirates in minutes played each of his first two seasons, joins with Travis Jette and Ben Rotert (Sr., D, Bozeman, Mont.) to form the bulk of Whitworth's defensive line. The trio has limited opponents to 52 shots on goal (3.7 per match) this season. Powerhouse Schedule: Whitworth took on five non-conference opponents that posted a cumulative record of 70-23-4 in 2007. Three of them (Gustavus Adolphus, UC Santa Cruz and Wisconsin-Whitewater) were participants in the NCAA Division III tournament last season, while Cal Lutheran was co-champion of the SCIAC. National Rankings: Whitworth stays in the top 25 this week at 20th in the NSCAA/adidas Division III coaches poll, moving up two spots from the October 14th rating. The Bucs are currently ranked third in the west region. Click here for the latest NSCAA national DIII poll. The latest NSCAA West Region rankings are here. The Coach: The fall of 2008 marks Sean Bushey's 13th season as the head men's soccer coach at Whitworth. No coach has ever served longer in that capacity at Whitworth. Bushey, who has his USSF "A" license, has a 142-69-22 record after 12 seasons as the Bucs' head men's soccer coach (152-75-24 in 13 years overall). He has led the Pirates to three Northwest Conference titles in the last four years, and four titles overall. Last season (2007) Whitworth won an NWC title and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament. In 2005 he led Whitworth to the NCAA Division III Final Four after the Pirates won their second straight NWC championship. It was the first time a men's soccer team had repeated as Northwest Conference champions in more than ten years. In 2004 he led Whitworth to its second NWC title in his tenure and to the second round of the NCAA tournament, while in 2001 he led the Pirates to a conference championship and the NCAA Regional Finals. He has been named Northwest Conference Men's Coach of the Year three times. Over the last nine-plus years (including this season), the Whitworth men are 131-43-17 (.730). Live Stats Offered: Live statistics of all Pirate home matches this season will be available on the Whitworth University Men's Soccer web page. The link for the matches is: The Opponents: Pacific Lutheran enters the week with a 6-7-1 overall record and a 4-4-1 mark in the NWC. The Lutes had won four in a row to move within striking distance of the league-lead, but then lost 2-1 at Puget Sound last Wednesday and 1-0 at home to Pacific on Sunday. Surafel Worku leads a balanced attack with three goals and two assists. Whitworth won a see-saw 3-2 victory over PLU on September 28th this season. Puget Sound (7-5-2 overall, 5-2-2 NWC) stands alone in third place in the NWC standings. The Loggers have won three in a row, including last Wednesday's win over PLU and a 4-3 come-from-behind victory over George Fox on Saturday. Taylor Hyde leads UPS with six goals and two assists this season. The Loggers handed Whitworth its only home loss of the season on September 27th when they won 1-0 in double overtime. Go to Athletics Home Page > Men's Soccer > Sports Releases > |
