OSU Continues Non-Conference Slate vs. UP and SJSU
September 18, 2013 | Men's Soccer
LOOKING AHEAD: Oregon State (5-1-0 overall, 0-0-0 Pac-12) will continue its 2013 season with a pair of games this week. The Beavers will hit the road to take on Portland Thursday at 6 p.m., before returning home on Sunday to face off with San Jose State at 1 p.m.
FOLLOW ALONG: Thursday's match will feature live stats and a live video stream, courtesy of Portland men's soccer. Links to all of the game's multimedia platforms will be available on the men's soccer schedule page of osubeavers.com. Sunday's game will be carried live on Pac-12 Networks. Live stats will be available at osubeavers.com as well. You can also follow @OSUBeavers_MSOC and @CoachSimmo for updates on Oregon State men's soccer.
SCOUTING PORTLAND: The Pilots are 3-2-0 on the season, and have played four of their opening five games at home. Eddie Sanchez leads Portland with six points on two goals and two assists. He is followed by Michael Escobar, who has notched five points on one goal and three assists, and Thomas Iwasaki, who has recorded two goals. Justin Baarts has started four games in goal for the Pilots, allowing eight goals and recording 11 saves. The Pilots have outshot their opponents 84-53 on the season. Head coach Bill Irwin is in his 11th year as the Pilots' top-man. He has a career record of 96-80-31.
PORTLAND SERIES HISTORY: The Beavers hold a 3-14-0 record all-time against Portland, and have never beaten the Pilots in Portland in 10 tries. The Pilots have won the last four meetings between the two sides, with the last Oregon State win coming in 2002.
SCOUTING SAN JOSE STATE: The Spartans have opened the season with an 0-4-1 record. San Jose State has found the net three times through the opening five games, with Rory Knibbs, Ben Reiter and Sam Croucher tallying one goal apiece. Felix Petermann has started three games in goal this season, recording 18 saves and conceding nine goals. Head coach Gary St. Clair is in his 24th season as the Spartans' skipper, boasting a record of 205-188-37 as the program's top man.
SAN JOSE STATE SERIES HISTORY: The Beavers hold a 5-1-0 record all-time against San Jose State, and a 2-1-0 record in games played in Corvallis. The teams' last matchup came in 2009, when the Beavers topped the Spartans 3-1. Prior to that contest, Oregon State had not taken on San Jose State since 1996.
CAN'T STOP KHIRY: Junior forward Khiry Shelton made a massive impact in last weekend's games against Seattle U and Air Force. The Leander, Texas, native opened the weekend with a goal that leveled the score against the Redhawks. He followed that up by scoring twice against the Falcons to record his first career multi-goal game. Shelton currently leads the Pac- 12 with nine points on four goals and one assist this season.
LOCKING IT DOWN: The Beavers have allowed just three goals through the first six games of the 2013 season, in an early-season stretch that has included three shutouts. The team's defensive record through the first three weeks matches the best goals-allowed record through the first six games in Oregon State history. The only other time the Beavers held their first six opponents to three goals came back in 1998.
PROTECTING THE FORT: If Oregon State beats San Jose State on Sunday, the Beavers will tie the school record for consecutive home victories. The current mark was set over the span of two seasons, as the Beavers won their final home game of 1988 and stretched the streak to five in the opening weeks of 1989. With a win over the Spartans, Oregon State would be poised to break the record with their sixth consecutive home win on Sept. 27 against Northwest Christian. The longest home unbeaten streak in Beaver history is 10 games, played over the course of the 2004 and 2005 seasons.
GETTING SOME LOVE: The Beavers are receiving some recognition in the national rankings. Oregon State received 10 votes in the NSCAA National Rankings this week, and is currently ranked No. 6 in the NSCAA Far West Rankings. The Beavers are also 22nd in the Bennett Rankings and 23rd in the Massey Rankings.
BEAVERS IN THE PAC: Oregon State currently leads the Pac-12 in wins with a record of 5-1-0. No. 6 Washington currently sits at 4-0-1, while No. 4 California is 3-0-1. Junior Khiry Shelton leads the conference with nine points, and is tied for first in the conference with four goals. Sophomore Bjorn Sandberg and senior Borce Atanasov are tied atop the conference with three assists apiece. Sophomore Matt Bersano leads the league in saves with 30 and is tied for the Pac-12 lead in shutouts with three. As a team, the Beavers are first in the conference in goals (13) and assists (14).
