Oct. 8, 2008
Complete Release in PDF Format 
This Week
Friday, October 10
LMU vs. Portland (4-4-2, 1-2-0 WCC)
Sullivan Field - 4:00 p.m.
Gametracker and live audio available at www.LMULions.com
Sunday, October 12
LMU vs. Gonzaga (5-4-1, 2-1-0 WCC)
Sullivan Field - 2:00 p.m.
Gametracker and live audio available at www.LMULions.com
Briefly
The first full week of October means the first full week of West Coast Conference action descends upon Sullivan Field as LMU hosts the teams from the Pacific Northwest. On Friday, the Lions shoot for their first conference win of the year with a visit from Portland at 4 p.m. On Sunday, it is Gonzaga's turn in a 2 p.m. kick-off.
Listen To And Follow The Lions Live On The Web
Loyola Marymount University, in conjunction with Stretch Internet, is proud to present FREE live audio broadcasts over the World Wide Web on www.LMULions.com. Join commentators Jesse Kass and Ricky Randle for all the Lion home games in 2008. Just click on the "Listen" or "Archive" link next to the game of your choice. All broadcasts will be archived within 72 hours of their original airing and will include both the pre-game and post-game shows.
All home games and select away games will be available live on Gametracker through the LMU website. Check www.LMULions.com for all Gametracker live stats information.
Media Guide
The 2008 LMU men's soccer media guide is now available to download at www.LMULions.com. This is the only source of copies of the guide.
Coming to a Game?
If you are planning to attend a game at LMU this season, then be sure to reserve your tickets today by ordering online at www.LMULions.com or calling the LMU Ticket Office at (310) 338-LION. The Loyola Marymount University campus is located in Westchester at 1 LMU Drive, approximately four miles north of the Los Angeles International Airport. Visitors must use the main entrance off of Lincoln Blvd. on LMU Drive. Parking for Sullivan Field will be in General Parking Lot A.
About Portland (4-4-2, 1-2-0 WCC)
This will be Portland's first WCC road trip of the year after opening the WCC schedule with three consecutive home games. Following a 2-1 home defeat to Gonzaga, Portland split its matches last weekend, defeating Santa Clara 4-1 on Friday before dropping a 1-0 decision to San Francisco on Sunday. Against the defending WCC champion Broncos, Brayton Knapp gave Portland the lead five minutes in, only for SCU to equalize 30 minutes later. The Pilots regained the lead through a pair of Bryan Irwin goals either side of halftime and Frankie Lopez finished off the win in the 69th minute. That offensive explosion was halted two days later, when the Pilots were undone by a 70th minute USF goal.
Lopez has seven goals and 15 points to lead both the Pilots and the WCC. Irwin (four goals, nine points) is second. Austin Guerrero leads the WCC with 41 saves.
Bill Irwin is in his sixth season as head coach at Portland, having put together a record of 50-46-15. Last year, the Pilots went 10-6-5 overall, 6-2-4 in the WCC for a third place finish. They were selected to appear in the NCAA Tournament, falling in the first round at Washington, 1-0. They return 17 letterwinners and five starters.
Portland swept the season series last year, 5-2 in Portland and 3-0 at LMU, running its winning streak in the all-time series to four games. UP dominated the series early and holds a 17-5-2 advantage but only leads 6-5-2 since 1999. LMU's last win over Portland came at home on October 30, 2005, a 1-0 victory.
About Gonzaga (5-4-1, 2-1-0)
The early league leaders, Gonzaga went 1-1 last week, falling to San Francisco 1-0 on Friday before toppling Santa Clara 2-1 in overtime on Sunday. The Bulldogs held a 9-6 shot advantage against the Dons but were unable to break through. They left it late against the Broncos before coming away with the win. Trailing 1-0, Mitchell Weller equalized with 10 minutes to play before Ben Funkhouser nabbed the game-winner in the 97th minute.
Funkhouser leads Gonzaga in scoring with nine points on three goals and three assists. Tye Perdido has a team-high four goals while Bryan Mullaney leads the assist category with four. Scott Barnum has two shutouts and a GAA of 1.17 in goal.
Now in his 14th season in Spokane, Einar Thorarinsson has a record of 115-106-21 at Gonzaga and a 23-year coaching record of 238-157-34. The Bulldogs were 9-7-4 overall in 2007, finishing fourth in the WCC with an even mark of 4-4-4. The season ended with GU's second-ever NCAA Tournament appearance, a 1-0 first round loss at Southern Methodist. They return 10 letterwinners and four starters.
Much of the recent success in the series belongs to LMU, who has won seven of the last 10 meetings. Even so, Gonzaga holds an 11-8-1 edge. The teams split last year, with each winning on its own home turf. Overall when games are played at LMU, the Bulldogs lead 5-4-1.
Last Week Recap: Late Goals Lift, Drop Lions
LMU got to experience both the joy of scoring a last-minute winner and the agony of conceding one as the Lions split their games last week against Cal State Bakersfield and Saint Mary's. In the final non-conference tune-up on Thursday against CSUB, a scoreless first half gave way to an exciting final 45:27 as the visiting Roadrunners stunned the Lions with the opening goal in the 52nd minute. That lead didn't last long, however, as LMU struck back less than three minutes later. After a cleared corner, junior Steffen Canty sent a long cross back into the box. Everyone else stopped except for freshman Artur Jozkowicz, who hustled to redirect his header to bring LMU level. The Lions mounted a flurry of shots toward the end of regulation but were repelled every time until the first minute of overtime, when freshman Fernando Barba laced a 22-yard strike just 27 seconds into overtime to give the Lions a 2-1 victory.
Sunday's WCC opener saw the Lions on the other side of the coin. After junior Brad Stisser had given LMU the early lead, Saint Mary's responded just before halftime and then shocked LMU with the game-winner with a mere 58 ticks on the clock.
Lions Equal Ties Record Against Oregon State
It's not necessarily a record anyone sets out to break but the Lions have reached a level only thrice achieved in LMU history. With their 1-1 tie against Oregon State, the Lions registered their fourth tie of the year, equaling the school record set in 1988 and, ahem, tied in 2005.
Sampson Stays Strong
Junior goalkeeper Patrick Sampson has a September to remember as he garnered the WCC Player of the Month award to go along with two Player of the Week nods and his first two career shutouts. Despite facing four ranked opponents in his first four games, Sampson went 1-1-2 in the month, shutting out ranked foes Cal Poly and UIC. Currently, Sampson leads the WCC in saves per game (4.84). He is second in total saves (34), shutouts (two), and GAA (0.78). He is also ranked among the national leaders, coming in at 25th in save percentage (0.850), 36th in total saves, and 47th in GAA.
With his WCC Player of the Week honor on Sept. 7, Sampson was the first LMU goalkeeper in 12 years to be so honored, joining Chris Walter (Oct. 8, 1996), and the first Lion overall to be the WCC POW since David Niemeyer in 2006. Just two weeks later, he was again named the WCC Player of the Week, for Sept. 21. In doing so, he became the first WCC player twice honored this season and the first LMU player to be honored twice in the same year since Arturo Torres did it three times in 2000.
Sampson has two shutouts in 2008, both coming against ranked foes as he kept #24 Cal Poly off the board and then posted a clean sheet and a then-career-high seven saves at #11 UIC. He raised his career-high to eight saves against Oregon State.
Offensive Onslaught
Mired in a scoring drought, LMU has made it a point to put more shots on frame. That has led to back-to-back games of 20+ shots, with the Lions attempting a season-high 26 shots vs. Cal State Bakersfield and then 24 more at Saint Mary's.
Overtime Madness
Anyone who thinks that LMU's four ties is uncharted territory, a quick glance at the historical records will show that the Lions have been down this road before. The 2007 season was the first time since 1991 that the Lions did not play at least three games that went into overtime. As for ties, the four in 2008 equals the record set in 2005. With five OT games in 2008, we are inching closer to matching the school record for most games that went into overtime, which currently stands at seven, set in 2000 and tied in 2003.
A-Tar on the Attack
It took them eight games but the Lions finally had someone score their second goal of the year as freshman Artur Jozkowicz emerged as the team's leading scorer with his header against Cal State Bakersfield. Jozkowicz has been a bright spark for the Lion offense, coming off the bench in six games and scoring two goals in just 287 minutes. His pace and work ethic have helped position him to be a dangerous weapon for LMU.
Senior Leadership
It goes without saying that seniors can make or break a team's season. Good senior leadership can lift a team facing adversity while poor leadership can derail hopes. Last year, the Lions had four seniors and got a combined three assists out of them en route to a 3-16-1 record. That has changed this year as Brad Stisser, Jawaan Delaney, Stephen Carlson, and Andrew Kristof have been a steadying force for a young squad. Stisser and Carlson have both started every game with Stisser tied for the team lead (four points on a goal and two assists). Delaney and Carlson each have an assist with the latter logging the third-most minutes of any player. Kristof and Delaney have both featured in the starting lineup but primarily given the team a boost off the bench.
