Top-Ranked Huskies Face No. 23 Oregon State
What To Look For
No. 1. Washington hits the road for the first time in conference play to face No. 23 Oregon State on Sunday, Oct. 12, at 3 p.m. in Corvallis. The Dawgs (9-1-0, 2-0-0) look defend their new top ranking against the Beavers (8-3-0, 1-1-0) who have also entered the national rankings. The game can be seen live on the Pac-12 Networks with J.B. Long and Chris Sullivan on the call.
Previous Matchups
The Dawgs 36-11-3 against Oregon State all-time, including sweeping the Beavers last season. The Dawgs won 1-0 in Seattle, before clinching the Pac-12 title in Corvallis on the final day of the regular season. Mason Robertson scored the winner in that game as the Dawgs prevailed, 1-0. In all, Washington has won five straight against the Beavers with the last loss coming in Corvallis in 2011 in Jamie Clark's first Pac-12 game as the Husky head coach.
Top Ranking
After defeating a pair of ranked opponents in California and Stanford last week, Washington has taken over the top ranking in every major poll. The Dawgs are No. 1 in the NSCAA Coaches Poll, but also top-ranked by TopDrawerSoccer.com, Soccer America and the NCAA RPI. The Dawgs have not had a top ranking since taking the No. 1 overall seed into the 1996 NCAA Tournament.
On The Offensive
Washington has been one of the most prolific offensive teams in the country so far this. The Dawgs have scored 26 goals in 10 games, which ranks tied for third the nation. Their 2.60 goals per game ranks fourth in the nation. Darwin Jones leads the Huskies with eight goals and 14 points, both which rank tied for seventh in the nation. Mason Robertson has chipped in six goal, while Josh Heard has five. James Moberg leads the Dawgs with six assists, which is tied for eighth in the country.
Defensive Efforts
The Husky backline has allowed 10 goals so far this season. Justin Schmidt and Michael Gallagher have been mainstays at center back, while Andy Thoma occupies the left fullback spot. Right back has been a more competitive position with Charlie Ranahan, Garret Jackson and Henry Wingo all seeing time, but freshman Justin Fiddes has earned the last four starts. Washington has allowed just 93 shots or 9.3 per game thus far. Of those 91 shots, only 38 have been on target. In comparison, the Dawgs have taken 188 shots, including 91 on goal.
In Net
Washington has one of the top goalkeeping tandems in the nation with Spencer Richey and Ryan Herman. Richey returned from a medical redshirt to earn the shutout in the opener against Gonzaga. Richey has 28 shutouts in his career, while Herman has eight, all last season. Herman took over at goalie last year when Richey was hurt and led the Pac-12 in goals against average.
Scouting The Opponent
Oregon State is off to a 8-3-0 start to the season, including splitting with Stanford and Cal to open conference play. After falling 1-0 to Stanford, the Beavers responded with a 6-2 win over Cal. Oregon State is currently second in the nation in scoring with 28 goals in 11 games. Khiry Shelton leads the Beavers with seven goals and 10 assists, while Timmy Mueller has nine goals and two assists.
Record Watch
Husky goalkeeper Spencer Richey is climbing the all-time UW records in both saves and shutouts. Richey now has 201 career saves, which ranks fourth at UW and 28 career shutouts, which ranks second. James Moberg is up to 21 assists for his career, which is tied for 10th all-time at Washington.
Weekly Honors
Darwin Jones was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week after leading Washington past California and Stanford this past week. He also was on nearly every national team of the week list, including TopDrawerSoccer.com and Soccer America. Josh Heard was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week after a goal and an assist in last Saturday's overtime win over Portland. After the UConn and Penn week, Mason Robertson was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week by College Sports Madness and the National Team of the Week by College Soccer News after his two-goal effort in UW's 3-1 win over UConn. He also added an assist in a 3-1 win over Penn. Back in early September, Jones earned College Soccer News National Team of the Week honors after his two-goal performance in a win at Gonzaga.
MAC Herman Trophy
Washington has two players on the MAC Herman Trophy Watch List, goalkeeper Spencer Richey and midfielder Cristian Roldan. Richey returns from a medical redshirt after being on this list last year as well. Roldan is on the list the for the first time after earning the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and Soccer America Freshman of the Year awards last season.
Conference Champions
Last year, Washington won its second Pac-12 title and first since 2000. The Dawgs clinched the Pac-12 crown by winning its last three games and leapfrogging UCLA and California in the conference standings. The Huskies 7-1-2 record was good for 23 points or two more than UCLA who finished second.