Stanford men’s soccer clinches Pac-12 title

STANFORD clinched its fourth-consecutive Pac-12 men’s soccer title on Thursday. The Cardinal had a dominant 5-1 win against UCLA to reach an unbeatable 22 points. This marks the fifth time the Cardinal has been crowned the regular-season champion.

With the three rivalry games on the schedule this week, the Pac-12 looks toward NCAA selections, which will be live streamed on ncaa.com on Monday, November 13 at 10 a.m. PT.

Two-time NCAA Champion Stanford currently has a RPI of 13 to lead the Pac-12. Not far behind are RPI 28 WASHINGTON, RPI 33 CALIFORNIA, and RPI 37 UCLA. With one game each remaining in the regular season, the Pac-12 looks to boost its postseason resume.

IN THE RANKINGS: Stanford bumped up one spot to No. 3 in the United Soccer Coaches poll, while UW is No. 20 and California enters the poll at No. 22. Stanford has been in the top-10 for 11 weeks of the season, including being ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll and the first two weeks of the season. Washington has been ranked in the poll for 10 weeks.

WEEKLY RECAP: Stanford clinched the Pac-12 title by defeating UCLA, 5-1. The Cardinal also beat San Diego State, 4-0, ending the week with two wins. California also ended the week with two wins, besting San Diego State (1-0) and UCLA (3-2). The Cardinal and the Golden Bears meet on Thursday at 7 p.m. PT for the final time in the regular season. The game is televised on Pac-12 Network.

PAC-12 PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Stanford's Corey Baird is the Pac-12 Player of the Week. Baird scored a third of Stanford's combined nine goals in its wins against UCLA (5-1) and San Diego State (4-0). He scored the final goal in the Cardinal’s 5-1 win over UCLA to clinch its fourth-consecutive Pac-12 title and the fifth all-time for Stanford. He also assisted on Logan Panchot's goal in the 88th minute against the Bruins to up his career total to 28, more than all but three players in program history. In the win against SDSU, the senior scored a goal in each half.

NATIONAL STATS LEADERS: No. 3 Stanford is in the top 10 in the nation in 12 statistical categories, including being in the top five in six categories. The Cardinal is second in the nation in assists per game (3.12), third in points per game (7.82), eighth in save percent (.842), fifth in scoring offense (2.35), third in shots per game (17.24), ninth in shots on goal per game (7.06), sixth in shutout percentage (.588), sixth in team goals against average (.523), second in total assists (53), sixth in total goals (40), fourth in total points (133), and sixth in won-lost-tied percentage (.853). California’s Jose Carrera-Garcia is 10th in assists per game (.56) and eighth in total assists (9). Stanford’s Nico Corti is eighth in goals against average (.531) and 10^th in save percent (.839).

SENIOR CLASS AWARD: Four Pac-12 student-athletes appeared on the Senior CLASS Award candidate list: Stanford’s Tomas Hilliard-Arce, Foster Langsdorf, Drew Skundrich, and Oregon State’s Timmy Mueller. Stanford’s Langsdorf and Hilliard-Arce are among the finalists for the award. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award honors the attributes of NCAA Division I senior student-athletes in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. The award program is designed exclusively for college seniors who are utilizing their complete athletic eligibility, remaining committed to their university and pursuing the many rewards a senior season can bring.

MAC HERMANN WATCH LIST: San Diego State’s Pablo Pelaez, and Stanford’s Tomas Hilliard-Arce and Foster Langsdorf represent the Pac-12 on the preseason MAC Hermann trophy watch list. Twenty-eight players from NCAA Division I schools around the country have been marked as potential contenders for the 2017 Missouri Athletic Club’s (MAC) Hermann Trophy. The MAC Hermann Trophy is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer, presented annually to one male and one female athlete.

TOPDRAWERSOCCER.COM PRESEASON BEST XI: Seven Pac-12 student-athletes appear on the TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Best XI. Stanford tied for the most of any school with four players featured on the teams. Stanford’s Tomas Hilliard-Arce was selected for the first team; San Diego State’s Pablo Pelaez and Stanford’s Foster Langsdorf are on the second team; Stanford’s Drew Skundrich is on the third team; and UCLA’s Brandon Terwege, Stanford’s Logan Panchot, and Washington’s Blake Bodily are on the freshman team.

PRESEASON COACHES POLL: Breaking a seven-year streak, the Pac-12 coaches tabbed Stanford as the 2017 favorite over rival UCLA, which is ranked second in the preseason coaches poll. Washington followed in third, San Diego State is fourth, and Oregon State edged out California for fifth and sixth, respectively.

PRESEASON ALL-PAC-12: Stanford’s 2016 co-Pac-12 Player of the Year Foster Langsdorf and Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year Tomas Hilliard-Arce highlight the star-studded 2017 Preseason All-Pac-12 team. 2016 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Washington’s Handwalla Bwana, UCLA’s junior Erik Holt, and SDSU’s senior Adam Allmaras also appear on the team.

2016 PAC-12 MEN’S SOCCER IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT: Four Pac-12 men’s soccer teams were selected to participate in the 2016 NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship, tied for the second-most conference representatives in the field-Stanford, Washington, San Diego State, and UCLA. Stanford went on to win its second consecutive NCAA title after defeating Wake Forest, becoming the first repeat champion since Indiana in 2003-04.

CONFERENCE STANDINGS

UPCOMING SCHEDULE (all times pacific)

2017 PAC-12 MEN'S SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

THIS WEEK: Corey Baird, Sr., F/MF, Stanford (Escondido, Calif.)

ALSO NOMINATED: Francisco Perez, CAL.

2017 PAC-12 MEN'S SOCCER PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

 NATIONAL HONORS

MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List
Pablo Pelaez, SDSU; Tomas Hilliard-Arce, STAN; Foster Langsdorf, STAN

Senior CLASS Award Watch List
Tomas Hilliard-Arce, STAN; Foster Langsdorf, STAN; Timmy Mueller, OSU; Drew Skundrick, STAN

IN THE PRESEASON

Pac-12 Preseason Poll | United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll