Stanford clinches share of Pac-12 Men's Soccer title

PAC-12 TITLE: No. 6 STANFORD (11-2-4, 7-1-1) clinched at least a share of its fifth-consecutive Pac-12 Men’s Soccer title in its weekend sweep of San Diego State, 2-0, and UCLA, 1-0. No. 22 OREGON STATE (10-4-3, 6-2-1) and No. 25 WASHINGTON (11-7-0, 5-4-0) are ranked in the latest United Soccer Coaches Poll and square off this weekend in the regular-season finale, while UCLA (10-7-0, 5-4-0) is listed as receiving votes. All four teams in the national poll also boast a NCAA top-30 RPI heading into the final week of league play with Stanford posting the best RPI at No. 4 and is followed by UCLA (No. 21), Washington (No. 25) and Oregon State (No. 27).

The Cardinal has 22 points after nine Pac-12 matches and controls its own destiny with the chance to claim the Conference championship outright with either a win or draw in its last matchup against CALIFORNIA on Thursday, Nov. 8. The Beavers sit in second place with 19 points and could become co-champions if they defeat Washington on Sunday, Nov. 11 to tally a grand total of 22 points, contingent on Stanford’s game against Cal.

The 2018 NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship selection show takes place on Monday, Nov. 12. The field is comprised of 48 teams, which features 24 conference champions and 24 at large bids selected to compete in the single-game elimination tournament. The teams will be seeded with 16 of the 48 squads receiving a First Round bye to automatically advance to the Second Round. If Stanford and Oregon State are co-champions, then the Beavers will earn the Conference’s automatic bid in the postseason based on the head-to-head competition tiebreaker.

PREVIEWING THE WEEK: All three games this week will be broadcast on Pac-12 Networks to conclude the regular-season. On Thursday, Stanford hosts California at 6 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Bay Area and UCLA faces San Diego State at 8 p.m. PT on Pac-12LA. The Pac-12 slate officially wraps up with the potential title implication match of Oregon State versus Washington on Friday at 8 p.m. PT on Pac-12 Network.  

WEEKLY NOTES: Stanford is the first program in Pac-12 history to win five-straight Conference crowns, beating out previous record-holder UCLA that won four titles from 2002-05. The Cardinal eliminated UCLA from the championship chase as Zach Ryan scored the conference clincher for his team-leading eighth goal of the season. Stanford collected its third consecutive shutout and 10th of the season to lower the team's league-leading goals against average to 0.550, which ranks seventh nationally and its 0.588 shutout percentage is sixth. The Cardinal ranks third nationally in save percentage (.867), 10th in assists per game (2.29) and is 14th with a 0.765 win percentage.

Oregon State has notched its 10th 10-win season in program history and the second since 2003 as the Beavers six Pac-12 wins marks the second-highest conference win total all-time. Oregon State returns from its bye week with the potential to record its fewest losses in a single season in school history after recording five in 1995. Under first-year head coach Terry Boss, the Beavs could tie the program record for wins in a conference season of seven that came in 2003 (7-3-0) to finish second in the Pac-10. Gloire Amanda is third in the Pac-12 with eight goals this season, followed by Don Tchilao, who is tied for fifth with seven.

Washington recorded its third-straight shutout with a 2-0 win over Loyola-Chicago as Corban Anderson notched a goal and an assist and Dylan Teves added his fifth goal of the year. Senior Scott Menzies leads the team with nine goals on the season and 18 points, which is the second-most and fifth-most in the Conference, respectively.

UCLA split decisions last week with a 1-0 victory over Cal before falling in a narrow 1-0 loss to Stanford on Sunday. Matt Hundley leads the Bruins in points (17) and assists and is tied for the team-lead in goals (5) with Mohammed Kamra. UCLA’s depth has been prominent this year as 11 different players have notched a  goal so far with six players recording the nine total game-winners.

CALIFORNIA (6-9-2, 2-7-0) freshman Taylor Davila recorded a tally and an assist as the Golden Bears defeated San Diego State, 2-0, on Sunday. The win marked California’s fourth shutout of the season and
goalie Drake Callender made a season-high seven saves. Cal’s top offensive force Shinya Kadono leads the Pac-12 in points (26), goals (12) and shots (55) as well as each category in the respective per game statistic.

SAN DIEGO STATE (6-10-1, 1-8-0) Senior Damian German tied a season-high seven shots with four on goal while fellow senior, Cameron Hogg, made three saves in the team’s 2-0 loss to Cal. German is tied for second in the Conference with three game-winning goals this season, while Pablo Pelaez leads the team in goals (6) and points (15), which rank eighth in the Pac-12 in goals per game (0.38) and tied for ninth in points per game (0.94). The Aztecs were recently recognized by Top Drawer Soccer for having a top-20 2019 recruiting class.

NATIONAL HONORS: Stanford center back Tanner Beason earned Pac-12 Player of the Week honors and a spot on TopDrawer Soccer’s National Team of the Week for his individual performance last week. Beason scored one goal and helped the Cardinal grab a share of the Pac-12 title with a pair of shutout wins last week.

Five Pac-12 players are featured in the top-15 of TopDrawer Soccer's Midseason Top-100 Player Rankings, which ties the ACC for the most of any Conference in the nation. League selections include six in the top-25 -No. 5 Andrew Thomas, Stanford; No. 8 Jean-Julien Foe Nuphaus, Cal; No. 9 Frankie Amaya, UCLA; No. 12 Ethan Bartlow, Washington; No. 14 Justin Garces, UCLA; and No. 25 Ian Lonergan, Cal. A total of 11 Pac-12 players make an appearance on the list.

PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Beason converted a penalty kick against San Diego State, 2-0, on Thursday night for his conference-leading sixth goal in Pac-12 play this season and made a crucial goal-line clearance in Sunday’s 1-0 win against UCLA. Collected his second Pac-12 Player of the Week honor this year for Stanford’s fourth award of the season and 33rd all-time.

MAC HERMANN NOMINEE WATCH: Drake Callender of California and Erik Holt of UCLA represent the Pac-12 on the preseason MAC Hermann Trophy watch list. Twenty eight players from NCAA Division I schools around the country have been marked as potential contenders for the 2017 Missouri Athletic Club’s (MAC) Hermann Trophy. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer, presented annually to one male and one female athlete.

TOPDRAWERSOCCER PRESEASON BEST XI: Stanford defender Tanner Beason, two-time All-Pac-12 first team selection, has been selected to the preseason All-Pac-12 team and the TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Best XI first team. Washington defender Quentin Pearson was named to TopDrawerSoccer’s Preseason Best XI third team while new teammate Ethan Bartlow earned a spot on the freshman team. Including Bartlow, the Pac-12 had three TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Best XI freshman team selections, which tied for the most of any conference in the country. UCLA was the only school to land two incoming players on the team with forward Matt Hundley and goalkeeper Justin Garces.

CONFERENCE STANDINGS (Expanded standings)

UPCOMING SCHEDULE (Times PDT)