Oct. 3, 2008

Final Stats

(Spokane, WA) - Junior forward Conor Chinn scored his third goal of the season lifting USF to a 1-0 decision at Gonzaga in its West Coast Conference opener Friday afternoon at the Gonzaga Soccer Stadium. The Dons (2-5-1) secure a victory to open league play for the first time since 2002 and defeat the Bulldogs (4-4-1) in Spokane for the first time since 2005.

Chinn scored his second game-winner of the season in the 31st minute, poking the ball past diving GU goalkeeper Scott Barnum. For Chinn it was his 13th career scoring strike and fifth game-winner.

From there it was up to the stingy USF defense. The Dons, who entered the contest with the fewest goals allowed (7) and lowest team GAA (0.95) in the WCC continued to excel. The Bulldogs fired nine shots, five in the second half and attempted seven corner kicks with four coming after intermission. Each time Gonzaga threatened, the Dons responded.

"We are happy to open West Coast Conference play with a win, but there are some areas we need to improve," USF head coach Erik Visser said. "Getting a shutout on the road in conference is not an easy thing to do and our defense did a nice job. We must continue to work and face another big test at Portland on Sunday."

Senior goalkeeper Jeremy Coupe (2-3-1) posted his second shutout of the season and made one save. Barnum suffered the loss for the Zags and made one save on the afternoon.

Gonzaga held a 9-6 shots advantage and owned a 7-3 edge in corner kicks. Junior midfielder Jonathan Levy paced the Dons with a pair of shots. Chinn, junior midfielder Leon Williams, sophomore forward Jonathan McMullen and sophomore defender Justin Warren each added an attempt for San Francisco.

USF concludes its opening weekend of WCC play when it travels to Portland to take on the Pilots Sunday, October 5. Game time against Portland is set for 1:30 PM at Merlo Field. The original kick-off was 2:30 PM, but was adjusted to accommodate USF's flight plans.

NOTES: USF's last win to open WCC play came in a 4-0 triumph against Saint Mary's (10/18/02). The last time the Dons won a conference opener on the road came 11 years ago in a 1-0 victory at Loyola Marymount (10/10/97)... San Francisco improves to 13-11-1 in WCC road matches since the start of the 2005 season.