Oct. 25, 2016
The San José State men's soccer team visit Air Force and the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) this week, playing on Thursday, October 27 and Saturday, October 29. The Spartans are two points out of the last spot to qualify for the WAC tournament with three matches to play. Three other teams vying for the last tournament spot have between four and six matches remaining on their schedule.
Matches #17 - 18
San José State (2-12-2, 1-5-1 WAC) vs. Air Force (11-5-0, 5-2-0 WAC)
Thursday, October 27, 2016, 6:00 p.m. MT
Cadet Soccer Stadium
USAF Academy, Colo.
Streaming Video
San José State (2-12-2, 1-5-1 WAC) vs. UMKC (*2-9-2, 1-4-2 WAC)
Saturday, October 29, 2016, 7:00 p.m. CT
Durwood Soccer Stadium
Kansas City, Mo.
*UMKC plays a game on Thursday, October 27, ahead of the game with San José State.
LAST WEEKEND:
The Spartans lost their lone match of the weekend, 2-1, against nationally ranked Utah Valley on Oct 23. Rory Knibbs scored for SJSU, breaking a five-match shutout streak for the Wolverines.
NATIONAL RANKING STATUS FOR TUCAKOVIC:
Goalkeeper Nedin Tucakovic is third in the NCAA in goalie minutes played with 1519:42, tied for third in total saves (86) and 14th in saves per game (5.38).
PENALTY KICK KILLER:
Tucakovic has stopped both penalty kick attempts this season, one against Pacific and the other against UC Riverside. Against Pacific, Tucakovic made his save with the score tied at 2-2, which the Spartans went on to win, 3-2. Against UCR, Tucakovic kept the score tied at 1-1 with his save and the game eventually ended in a 2-2 tie.
KNIBBS' WAC CAREER SNAPSHOT
Three-time All-WAC honoree Rory Knibbs tied Tulsa's Donivan Bradshaw (1996-99) for the most goals scored (19) in WAC play, with his goal against Utah Valley on Sunday, Oct. 23. Knibbs is two points back (40) of the all-time mark for points (42) in WAC matches, behind current UNLV Rebel, Danny Musovski.
COLUNGA'S WAC CAREER SNAPSHOT
Two-time ALL-WAC honoree Jonathan Colunga tied SMU's Daniel Hernandez (1996-97) for the most career assists (11) in WAC matches on Sunday, October 23. Colunga's assist led to Knibbs' goal against Utah Valley.
TREND OF FALLING BEHIND:
In 13 of the last 15 matches, the Spartans have allowed the opponent to score the first goal, going 2-12-1 in the span, with the wins coming against Pacific and Houston Baptist. SJSU came back to tie the score in nine of those 13 matches but are only 1-7-1 in them.
SERIES HISTORY WITH AIR FORCE:
San José State leads the all-time series against Air Force, 21-10-5, dating back to 1963. Spartans head coach Simon Tobin is 1-0-1 against Air Force in his two seasons at SJSU, winning at USAFA, Colo. in 2014, 5-1, and tying at home in 2015, 1-1.
THE WORD ON AIR FORCE:
The Falcons come into this week 11-5-0 overall and 5-2-0 in WAC play, receiving votes in the College Soccer News Top 30. In the latest NSCAA West Region Rankings, the Falcons are ranked sixth. Air Force leads the conference in points (109), goals (38) and assists (33).
SERIES HISTORY WITH UMKC:
San José State leads the all-time series against UMKC, 2-1-1, dating back to 2013. Spartans head coach Simon Tobin is 1-1-1 against UMKC in his two seasons at SJSU, playing them twice in 2014 and once in 2015. The Spartans are 0-1-1 playing at UMKC.
THE WORD ON UMKC:
The Kangaroos come into this week 2-9-2 overall and 1-4-2 in WAC play. UMKC has scored nine goals in 13 matches with Eric McWoods leading the way with four goals.
SOCIAL MEDIA:
Keep up with your San José State men's soccer team on social media!
Follow SJSU men's soccer on:
Twitter @sjsumsoccer
Facebook @sjsuspartansmenssoccer
Instagram @sjsumenssoccer