Dawgs Wrap Up Pac-12 Season In Corvallis
November 12, 2015 | Men's Soccer
What To Look For
Washington will wrap up the regular season on Thursday, November 12, with a trip to Corvallis to take on the Beavers. The match will kickoff at 2 p.m. and can be seen live on the Pac-12 Networks.
On The Offensive
Washington has scored just 17 goals in 18 games this season and rank tied for 170th in the country at 0.94 goals per games. James Moberg leads the Huskies with three goals, while Kyle Coffee, Ian Lange, Beau Blanchard and Quentin Pearson each have two. Coffee scored twice last week, including the winner against Stanford and the opening goal at UCLA. He has become the featured attacked in the offense. Blanchard scored the only goal in the last Pac-12 victory over Oregon State on an assist from Josh Heard. Heard and Blanchard each have two assists this season to lead the Dawgs.
Defensive Efforts
The Huskies have been excellent so far defensively with 10 shutouts in 18 games, but also have now gone four-straight without a clean sheet. The 10 shutouts are still tied for sixth in the country. The Washington record for shutouts is 14 set by the 1982 squad and it now looks like that record will survive. The Dawgs are allowing just 0.67 goals per game, which ranks 10th in the nation. Justin Schmidt leads a young group with freshman Quentin Pearson joining him at center back as that duo has played almost every minute of the year. Redshirt freshman Luke Hauswirth and sophomore Justin Fiddes have been the outside backs and also performed well. Last year's starter Michael Gallagher has moved up the field from center back to a holding midfield role, while Andy Thoma is gone, having graduated and drafted by the Portland Timbers of MLS.
In Net
Ryan Herman has nine shutouts already this season, which ranks in the top-10 nationally. The UW single-season record is 14 by Mark Schuur back in 1982. He was named Pac-12 Player of the Week following a weekend of consecutive shutouts of No. 3 Stanford and Cal the first time the team's met and is starting to receive some Hermann Trophy buzz. The fifth-year senior has 78 saves on the year and a 86.7 percent save percentage that ranks fourth in the country. His goals against average of 0.666 is 12th-best in the country. For his career, the redshirt senior now has 17 shutouts and a 21-7-9 record. Auden Schilder has also seen time this season, starting at Drexel and earning the shutout and win. He also played the second half against UCLA, allowing one goal.
Previous Matchups
The Huskies have traditionally had a great deal of success against Oregon State with a 37-12-4 all-time record. Washington defeated the Beavers 1-0 earlier this season when Beau Blanchard scored the game's only goal in the ninth minute. Last season, the Dawgs tied the Beavers 1-1 in Corvallis, but fell 2-0 at home. Since becoming head coach, Jamie Clark has led Washington to a 6-2-1 record against Oregon State.
Scouting Oregon State
Oregon State comes into the Pac-12 finale with a record of 8-8-1. The Beavers were ranked in the top-25 for much of the non-conference season, but have gone just 3-5-1 in Pac-12 play. They are currently fifth in the conference, but could climb over the Huskies into fourth with a win. OSU is led by Jordan Jones who has nine goals on the season. Timmy Mueller has also chipped in six.
Senior Class
Washington has a class of seven seniors that have been instrumental in the team's success. This group has a record of 48-17-16 at Washington has qualified for three NCAA Tournaments. A trip back this season would make it the first group since the 2001 seniors to make the NCAA's every year of their careers. The seven seniors are Michael Gallagher, Josh Heard, Ian Lange, James Moberg, Jim Oganga, Ryan Herman and Chad Wissing. This group has had arguably the most successful run in school history with four NCAA Tournament victories, including the first Elite 8 appearance in 2013 and another Sweet 16 last year. These seniors also won just the second Pac-12 title for UW, coming in 2013.
Player Of The Week
Ryan Herman was the Pac-12 Player of the Week and National Player of the Week as selected by TopDrawerSoccer.com for the week of October 5-11. The senior goalkeeper had 16 saves in a pair of shutouts over No. 3 Stanford and California. In both matches, Herman made critical, late game-savers to help the Dawgs earn at least a point on the road.
Record Watch
Ryan Herman has nine shutouts on the season, which ranks tied for fourth in UW history. The record is 14 by Mark Schuur in 1982. Midfielder James Moberg is already on the Husky top-10 list for assists with 21. He is currently tied for 10th and looks to ascend the list, which is led by Jason Boyce (1994-97) who hold the all-time Washington lead with 34 assists. Mason Robertson and Josh Heard are the active leaders for Washington in goals with 13.
Top Players By TopDrawer
TopDrawerSoccer.com released their annual lists of top players in college soccer in late October with four Huskies being recognized. On the list of the top-100 overall players, Ryan Herman ranked 42nd, while James Moberg ranked 44th. The soccer website also did a list of top-100 freshman with Quentin Pearson selected as the 21st-best rookie, while Kyle Coffee ranked 64th among freshman.
Returning All-Pac-12 Players
Washington has three players returning from the All-Pac-12 teams last season. James Moberg and Justin Schmidt were Second Team players, while Ian Lange was honorable mention. Before the year, the Pac-12 named a Preseason All-Pac-12 squad with Moberg and Mason Robertson being included.
Conference Of Champions
Stanford has clinched the Pac-12 title with 20 points and no other team with more than 16. UCLA is currently second with 16 points, while the Huskies could finish third with a win and California loss to Stanford. Washington last one the Pac-12 title in 2013. That was their first Pac-12 Championship since 2000 and second overall.
NCAA Tournament History
Washington has played in three-straight NCAA Tournaments under Jamie Clark. The Dawgs defeated Air Force in the first round in 2012, before falling at Creighton as the Blue Jays went on to advance to the College Cup. In 2013, Washington defeated Seattle U. in the second round and Stanford in the third round after a first-round bye. The Dawgs fell 1-0 to New Mexico in the Elite 8. Last season, the Dawgs earned a bye and then knocked out Furman in the second round in penalty kicks. The Dawgs tied the Paladins 0-0 in regulation and then came from behind in the shootout to win 5-4 on the eighth shooter. The following week, Washington earned a 2-2 draw with Michigan State in East Lansing, but fell in penalty kicks. Overall, Washington is 11-20-4 in the NCAA Tournament after back-to-back Sweet 16 seasons. The Dawgs have now advanced to the Sweet 16 three times in program history with the other coming in 2003. The Elite 8 appearance in 2013 was the first ever for the Dawgs. Washington's first NCAA appearance came in 1968, a first round loss to San Francisco. The Dawgs had seven-straight first round exits, before earning their first NCAA victory in 1992 with a 2-1 victory over Portland in the opening round. 2013 also marked the first year Washington won multiple games in the NCAA Tournament.
