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Letter to the Editor, Oct. 9th

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Dear editor,

On October 9th, 1968, The Peak ran a small ad which read as follows:
“Girls — need help? in trouble? Contact the Women’s Caucus Counsellor by letter ℅c/o SFU Student Society or phone her 299-**** evenings for information.”

As euphemistic as this ad was, the SFU Women’s Centre has been digging, and has been unable to find any examples of advertisement for surgical abortion (for this is indeed what is being referred to) in British Columbia — and perhaps Canada as a whole — earlier than this date. Whether or not this comes as a surprise to you will likely depend on how well you know the role this campus plays in Canadian women’s history.

In the early days of the Canadian feminist movement, SFU wasn’t just involved — to a large extent, it was the feminist movement. The Vancouver Women’s Caucus was founded by SFU students who were dissatisfied with the status quo; in the Sept. 18, 1968 issue of The Peak Marcy Toms wrote an editorial announcing the Women’s Caucus; the very next week it was followed with a column (by a young Maggie Benston) simply titled “On abortion”. The piece was meant to be educational. It made no calls for changes in law or policy, and merely addressed the consequences of unavailable birth control or abortion on women in Canada. It nevertheless inspired significant controversy. Meanwhile, the Women’s Caucus doubled down and tried to find out how it could provide birth control or abortion services to women in need, resulting in the above Peak ad.

The SFU Women’s Caucus was also the origin of the 1970 “Abortion Caravan,” which crossed from Vancouver to Ottawa, educating and protesting along their way. When they arrived at Parliament Hill on Mother’s Day 1970, they numbered 500 strong and succeeded in promoting a national discourse around abortion rights.

I mention these pieces of history in the aid of contextualizing our current “debate on abortion”. This ground has been tread before. Nationally, the Supreme Court has ruled on this before. At SFU, Marcy Toms founded the precursor to the Women’s Caucus in late 1967, 45 years ago, with this issue in mind.

When Maggie Benston wrote “On abortion”, when the Women’s Caucus placed that ad in The Peak (and got frantic replies from students at SFU, UBC and even elsewhere in the province), there was a conversation about abortion. In the decades since, this conversation has ended. And anyone suggesting otherwise is willfully ignorant of the history that SFU students helped to create. SFU helped jumpstart Canadian feminism, and those echoes remain to this day.

Sincerely,
Stephanie Boulding
Women’s Centre collective member
SFU student

Hellbound? provokes discussion and controversy

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Kevin Miller’s new documentary goes beyond Christian views. 

By Alexis Lawton-Smith

Kevin Miller, an Abbostford-based screenwriter and documentary filmmaker, has recently completed a provocative and controversial documentary. The film’s topic is a place that conjures up images of a fiery abyss, where its victims are sentenced to eternal damnation and punishment: hell.

Miller calls from Abbotsford, and begins to fervidly discuss his reasons for making the film. He has just arrived back from promotional screenings in California.

Hellbound?, Miller explains, is inspired by one very powerful memory, and a startling realization: “I became a Christian when I was nine years old. Even though my grandfather was a minister, and we kind of went to church, we weren’t necessarily a Christian family.” Miller pauses before continuing, “I remember one evening very vividly. It was a beautiful summer evening, and I was going out to help my family in the garden. I stopped on the driveway and looked at them. For the first time it struck me that if they didn’t believe what I believed, then they were all going to hell.”

[pullquote]“I remember one evening very vividly. It was a beautiful summer evening, and I was going out to help my family in the garden. I stopped on the driveway and looked at them. For the first time it struck me that if they didn’t believe what I believed, then they were all going to hell.”[/pullquote]

This sudden realization left Miller conflicted. “It puts you in a difficult position,” he explains, “because you think that you have discovered something you really fit into, but suddenly there is this bad side to it — a dark side.”

Miller emphasizes this experience because it led him to scrutinize the common views of Christian theology, which he felt revealed contradictions. “Although you are taught that God is love and forgiveness, behind that is a God that will ultimately not forgive. Even though we are supposed to love our enemies and forgive them, God won’t.”

Hellbound? attempts to expose these contradictions, and ask other daring questions. Although Miller declares that “a price can be paid for challenging the majority,” he made this documentary “to provoke informed discussion.”

[pullquote]At Hellbound?’s core is an argument that suggests how dangerous opposing viewpoints can be.[/pullquote]

This informed discussion doesn’t simply stop at Christian theology though. At Hellbound?’s core is an argument that suggests how dangerous opposing viewpoints can be. “Everything is so polarized, especially in America, and the people that disagree with you, they don’t just hold different views — they are wrong [to each other]. I think this ‘us vs. them’ theology is percolating under most of our public discourse.”

In an attempt to illustrate this discourse and opposition, Miller frames the documentary around the events of 9/11. Miller argues that “there are real world implications [with personal bias and belief] that go deep into our psychology . . . this is something that I am really trying to get at in this film, that there is a direct connection between what we believe and the world we create as a result.”

Hellbound? presents an eclectic group of speakers who range from pastors like Mark Driscoll to musicians like Oderus Urungus from the metal band Gwar. “I wanted to cast the net as far as possible,” states Miller. “I wanted to show that we all know the hell story, have an opinion about it, and it is somehow affecting our lives.”

While Miller identifies himself as Christian, he asserts that his view of Christianity has shifted over the course of his life. “My sense of what it means to be Christian has changed. It is not about joining a tribe,” Miller speaks quickly, but exalts his next words. “Christianity isn’t about exclusion . . . and it is not about vanquishing your enemies.”

At the end of the interview, Miller offers some reasons why Simon Fraser University students should watch his film: “I think it is a fascinating discussion whether you have written off religion or you are a diehard Hell believer. I would encourage you to come to this movie, because I think you will find something that intrigues you, or makes you mad. But I don’t think you will go away saying that it was a waste of time.”

Sugaring Season sweetens up autumn

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Beth Orton’s new album is one part honey one part spice. 

By Daryn Wright

The first thing one notices when listening to Beth Orton’s Sugaring Season is that she is able to perfectly and simultaneously render imagery of both the lament of summer and autumnal acceptance. The album cover is a side profile of Orton, wearing a collared white shirt, her hair in a comfortable up-do, overexposed lighting highlighting the shadows. These visuals do well to introduce the listener to the kind of album Sugaring Season is: an uncomplicated one, with floating melodies and careful acoustics.

The album opener, “Magpie”, is a showpiece for Orton’s wavery and precise vocals. The lack of articulation in her singing creates prominent soft vowel sounds, as she croons, “I don’t mind no what I tell you/I don’t mind no what I say/I don’t mind no what we’re saying.” The childlike syntax and repetition conveys the song’s meaning: the dreamlike confusion of loss. “Dawn Chorus” uses a clarinet to carry Orton’s lilting voice, as the intonation rises with each chorus. “Something More Beautiful” is reminiscent of Joni Mitchell or Cat Power, with an orchestral backing that builds with the progression of the song. The mostly acoustic flourishes aren’t timid though; if anything, they serve to elevate the power of Orton’s subtly aching vocals.

[pullquote] The mostly acoustic flourishes aren’t timid though; if anything, they serve to elevate the power of Orton’s subtly aching vocals.[/pullquote]

“Poison Tree” begins “I was angry with my friend/tell him wrath but wrath did end.” Orton’s wrath comes in the form of a classical guitar and echoing lyrics, assisted by male backing vocals. Complex instrumentation on Sugaring Season overrides Orton’s usual folktronica of albums past. Rather than a flat, pre-packaged folk album, this shift results in a more dynamic relationship between instrumentation and vocals: at times, Orton’s voice is flute-like.

“See Through Blue” sounds like it belongs in a French film; her elongated vowels sound foreign and ornate at first listen. A carnivalesque piano is paired with a chorus of violins, and the song is kept short and tidy: it is a glimpse into the window of Orton’s home and collection of sentimental objects. “Last Leaves of Autumn” is an auditory painting of a fall evening: leaves fall with the slow movement towards the chorus, and one imagines the passing of seasons with the shifting of speeds.

What Sugaring Season does well is provide a picture of Orton’s personal transformation: in the six years since her last album, Comfort of Strangers, she has married and become a mother. The album expresses a yearning and restlessness through her vocals and ornate instrumentation. She has turned the folktronica genre into something elemental, fusing the organic sounds of strings with the modern and domineering complexities of vocal experimentation. Sugaring Season explores emotional nuances fearlessly, and Orton’s comeback is likely to leave old and new fans alike yearning for a stroll among fallen leaves.

The Master is pleasingly lost at sea

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Paul Thomas Anderson’s sixth feature film proves to be worth the hype.

By Will Ross


To the extent that we can ascribe a narrative to Paul Thomas Anderson’s career, it may be a loss of resolution. Though all his work has been characterized by sprawl and ambition, each film has been more mysterious and elliptical than the last. And so, as we arrive at The Master, Anderson’s sixth feature, he seems to have jettisoned all causal links between scenes.

Most notably, he omits the meeting of the two leading actors: Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), an L. Ron Hubbard-inspired pseudo-scientific cult leader, and Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix), a World War II veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder. Quell, a drifter, wanders onto Dodd’s vessel during a party, and wakes up with no memory of the previous night — but Dodd remembers it quite well, and strikes up a friendship that he knows is dangerous to him and his cause. Quell accepts it, not because he is convinced by it, but because following a faith affirms his place in the world. When he asks where he is, a character replies, “You’re fine. You’re at sea.”

[pullquote] Anderson refuses to clearly locate any scene in a narrative thrust. The effect is mystifying, but not ambiguous — we always search for answers, but we are never lost entirely.[/pullquote]

So are we. Anderson refuses to clearly locate any scene in a narrative thrust. The effect is mystifying, but not ambiguous — we always search for answers, but we are never lost entirely. But even then, this kind of structural decision can make for inconsistent pacing, and there is a line between motion and meandering that the movie crosses several times.

[pullquote]The production was filmed in 70mm, a now-uncommon, large film format. The resulting appearance is astonishing, detailed, and unique; all the more so because while 70mm usually emphasizes wide compositions, The Master makes heavy use of close ups.[/pullquote]

The production was filmed in 70mm, a now-uncommon, large film format. The resulting appearance is astonishing, detailed, and unique; all the more so because while 70mm usually emphasizes wide compositions, The Master makes heavy use of close ups. The liberal use of hard light and shallow focus gives the actors’ facial features utter control of the frame.

The Master has become somewhat notorious for its scientology-inspired cult, and, indeed, it’s by turns a damningly cynical and misty-eyed farewell to religion. But what makes it truly engaging is that, despite its frequent ellipses, it takes its characters on an affecting, emotional journey. Late in the film, Freddie tries to reconnect with something he had run away from years ago, only to be met by disappointment. Watching his reaction, we realize that the Freddie Quell who we knew at the beginning would not — could not — have reacted to the situation this way.

It has no plot, and it has no revelations or answers or conclusions to offer its characters, but I don’t miss those things at all when a film ends with sequences as nostalgic and inspiring as the final 10 minutes of The Master.

Fashion Week: the battle between style and comfort rages on

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New York and London influence the world’s fashion choices. 

By Caroline Brown

There has always been an underlying rivalry between New York and London, two of the four epicenters of fashion. London gave rise to cultural phenomena such as the teddy boys, the mods, and the rockers. New York’s global influence came in the late 70s, when hip-hop and graffiti exploded onto the scene. Even though these two metropolitan cities dictate the world’s finance and business sectors, some people don’t see that they also dictate our fashion choices.

[pullquote]If I wanted to look at leather jackets, solid white t-shirts, and cardigans I would walk around Vancouver; we’ve already mastered comfort staples.[/pullquote]

Each February and September the fashion industry hosts Fashion Week in the four fashion capitals: New York, London, Milan and Paris. For the past five years, New York has been on top, producing commercial clothing with style and comfort. However, for spring 2013, New York’s continued use of last year’s colour blocking and floral, as well as an overemphasis on staple dressing (t-shirts, jeans, leather jackets, etc) was a disappointment. There weren’t any new designers to get overly excited about. One designer in particular, Custo Barcelona, suggested a new use for bright orange shag carpet. Other designers, like ALP and BLK DNM, played it safe and decided to base collections around staple pieces. Even though the fabrics and construction of the garments in both collections were lux and high quality, the desire for a commercially appealing collection left me bored and uninspired. If I wanted to look at leather jackets, solid white t-shirts, and cardigans I would walk around Vancouver; we’ve already mastered comfort staples.

Then there were the New York designers, who believe they live in a world where women wear cocktail dresses to work and gowns to clubs. Designers like Jenny Packham and Badgley Mischka produced clothes only for celebrities and the ultra-rich. Gown after gown came down the runway without any daytime wear in sight. Even though there were the usual show-stopping, I’m-changing-my-entire-wardrobe collections like Proenza Schouler, Alexander Wang, and Marc Jacobs, New York can’t continue to rest on their laurels.

[pullquote]Mary Katrantzou used exaggerated prints of stamps, banknotes and geometric lines, which emphasized the seduction of forgotten ancient European cultures.[/pullquote]

While many designers relish the independent outlook of London Fashion Week, their creative freedom largely outweighs their functionality. However, for spring 2013, many young designers in London have found that difficult balance of function and innovation. Recently, some designers who had left London Fashion Week in the past — like Preen, Jonathan Saunders and Matthew Williamson — decided to come back to their old stomping ground. Mary Katrantzou used exaggerated prints of stamps, banknotes and geometric lines, which emphasized the seduction of forgotten ancient European cultures. She favoured the easy silhouettes of shirtdresses, A-lines, sheaths and shifts, which would be great to wear walking along the seawall or sitting on a patio downtown.

Jonathan Saunders, who pioneered the revival of prints in past seasons, simplified his combination of prints by juxtaposing simplistic solid neutrals with metallic lux. While colour blocking and simple prints of stripes and polka dots also played a large role in his collection, a subtle change in the usage of prints relates more to modern women and their lifestyles. Christopher Raeburn, a recent newcomer known for austere parkas made from British Army parachute nylon, produced a utilitarian themed collection, including chic sweatpants made of grosgrain ribbon. His designs are practical and simple yet filled with clever details like tuxedo piping on a track jacket or a laminated-lace jacket.

London designers are beginning to design for modern women. We want clothing for all occasions and all types of weather. We travel through cities, from class to work, to parks and clubs, and we still want to maintain style. London designers are beginning to understand the complexity of our daily lives: while they continue to produce fashion-forward designs, they are keeping our labyrinth of a life in mind.

Clan losing streak pushed to eight games

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SFU women’s soccer team remains at bottom of standings after two more losses

By Bryan Scott
Photo by Adam Ovenell-Carter

The Simon Fraser women’s soccer team was hoping to get back on track last week. They were in action with two home games last week, and winless in their last eight games. They faced the Northwest Nazarene Crusaders (4–5) and the Western Washington Vikings (8–2).

The Crusaders dominated the shot totals in the first half. The Clan did not get to attempt a shot until the second half. The stingy Clan defense and goaltender Amanda Gilliand were up to the task, keeping it scoreless after half one. The game remained scoreless until the 50th minute, when the Crusaders capitalized on a corner kick. This was the only goal needed, as the Crusaders would ride on to win the game 1–0. Gilliand was a shining light on an otherwise gloomy day for the Clan, she made eight saves in the match.

When the Clan took the field against the Western Washington Vikings a few weeks ago, it was a lopsided 6–0 defeat for the Clan. This time it was still a loss, but a better showing. The Vikings scored their first goal in the 25th minute on rebound. The Clan kept it tight, keeping it with in one at half. This didn’t last long as the Vikings doubled their lead, just two minutes into the second half. Gilliand would keep the Vikings from scoring anymore making four saves, two in each half. The Clan didn’t score a goal in the game. This marks the fourth straight game the Clan has been shut out by their opponents, and the seventh time this season.

The Clan is in deep trouble; they sit in last place with an 0–7 record in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. Overall, they sit at 1–9 and have lost eight straight games.

Off the Top Rope

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A review of SFU’s elite wrestlers

By Clayton Gray

“You wrestle, that’s cool.  So, you jump off the top rope and hit people with chairs right?” This is often what you hear when you tell someone that you’re a wrestler. The images of Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, and Brett Hart are so closely tied with wrestling that the traditional sport of wrestling is hidden behind the large figure of professional wrestling. Due to this, only a few people are aware of the Simon Fraser wrestlers that currently compete at the highest levels of international competition.

There were three SFU students at the International University Sports Federation (FISU) World Championships in Kuortane, Finland over this past weekend. Representing SFU’s men’s wrestling team at heavyweight is Sunny Dhinsa, a freshman from Abbotsford, who won the Junior Freestyle nationals in the last year, Junior and Senior Greco-Roman Nationals, and placed 5th in the Federation International des Lutte (French for wrestling) Associees (FILA) Junior World Championships.

Danielle Lappage is one of the two women representing SFU’s women’s team at 63 kilograms. Danielle is one of the six wrestlers from Canada to ever bring a gold medal home from the FILA Junior World Championships. That achievement alone is enough to place her among the wrestling elite. She adds that to her three individual national championships and a national team title she has helped bring back to SFU.

Victoria Anthony, from Huntington Beach, California, is the third SFU student to compete in the FISU World Championships, at 48 kilograms. Victoria is one of the most accomplished young wrestlers in the world, with one fifth place and two first place finishes at the FILA Junior world Championships under her belt, not to mention a handful of national championships in both Canada and the United States.

Yet, the list SFU’s wrestling elite doesn’t end with those three. There are four other athletes, Justina Di Stasio (fifth place), Darby Huckle, Ashley Topnik, and Helen Maroulis (second place), who have represented SFU and Canada or the United States at the FILA Junior World Championships. Helen also took second place at the FILA Senior World Championships, which took place in Strathcona, Alberta this September.

So, the next time you meet a wrestler from SFU, remember they are more likely to have come off the top of the podium than the top of the turnbuckle.

Knee Deep in EIHL Hockey

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No NHL hockey pool? No worries.


By Robert Murray

NEW BRUNSWICK (CUP) — The Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) has most things. It has rinks, hockey teams, players, money, and the best thing about hockey, hockey. However, it lacks one important thing: fantasy hockey. Despite uncertainty over whether or not my friends and I could carry out our dreams as armchair general managers for fantasy hockey, we decided to jump ship to the United Kingdom’s premier hockey league.

On the opening day of the EIHL season, two friends of mine, Marshall Thomas and Bryce Works, created the first annual EIHL Fantasy Hockey League. With team names like “Five for Tea Time” (Thomas), “London Silly Nannies” (Works), and the “Titty Ho Express” (myself), we dived head first into the world of English hockey. Titty Ho is an actual town name in England. Google it.

How are our teams selected? We each get to select two goalies (standard), but the forwards and defense get a bit trickier. We picked six forwards and four defencemen and tracked their point totals. Since the league is apparently full of players who like to beat the crap out of each other (this year’s leader in penalty minutes through five games is American Hockey League dropout Benn Olson with 99), we also picked an additional three forwards and two defencemen to score points based solely on penalty minutes, with players scoring one point for every five penalty minutes.

The EIHL has no big name talent. Heck, games are on weekends, and the players hold down part-time jobs in the week. Regardless, I developed a solid system for selecting my players. I was happy to select Stuart MacRae from Sydney, Nova Scotia, who played with the Devils. These Devils aren’t from New Jersey, but Cardiff. I also selected a forward to count penalty minutes who happened to be named Jeff Hutchins, only because his name resembled Geoff Hutchinson, my co-worker at The Argosy last year.

I also selected Sylvain Cloutier based on the fact that he is related to former Vancouver Canucks goaltender Dan Cloutier. One also can’t forget the Israeli superstar Maxim Birbraer, who is currently the only player from the Middle Eastern country to be drafted in the NHL (the New Jersey Devils drafted him 67th overall in 2000.) The steal of the draft went to Marshall, as he randomly discovered that former Moncton Wildcats goaltender Nicola Riopel signed with the Dundee Stars.

Of course, this league isn’t perfect, and my lack of knowledge made my team suffer. My top defenceman, Jeff Mason was supposed to carry my defensive core. Nope, turns out he’s playing in Switzerland this year, whoops.

Are we crazy? Maybe, but we need our fantasy hockey fix. Lockout or no lockout, we are going to get our fantasy hockey fix. The powers that be can take away our hockey, but just like in 2004–05, we will find alternatives to satisfy our cravings. Instead of watching the Washington Capitals, we’ll watch the Edinburgh Capitals; the Florida Panthers become the Nottingham Panthers; and the Philadelphia Flyers become the Fife Flyers. It’s as simple as that. Over there, players aren’t doing it for the money; some of them are even coaches.

I think this is just the beginning for EIHL Fantasy hockey. All aboard the Titty Ho Express!

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Clan light up Red Storm

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SFU improves 2–3 with first conference win.

By Bryan Scott
Photos by Adam Ovenell-Carter

 

The Simon Fraser University football team played the Dixie State Red Storm in an important conference game on Terry Fox Field last week. Before this game the Clan were 0–3 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, tied with Azusa Pacific for last place.

It seemed like a different Clan team showed up to play in this game. Especially running back Bo Palmer, who was an unstoppable force in this game. He had 145 yards rushing, 23 yards receiving with four rushing touchdowns. Yes, four touchdowns. “We wanted to come out with intensity,” said Palmer, and that they did. The Clan scored the first two touchdowns of the game, which gave them the upper hand early on. The game stayed fairly close in the first half, which ended with the Clan up 20–14. Clan receiver Lamar Durant was solid, catching nine passes for 116 yards and a touchdown early in the third quarter. Five minutes later, Palmer had a 54 yard rush which led to his third marker of the game. The Clan would ride out the Red Storm and take the game 41–28.

Trey Wheeler responded well to last week’s unfortunate late game interception. He was 26–40 with 312 yards and two passing touchdowns. More importantly, he did not throw a single interception in this game, which is promising moving forward for the Clan.

With this win, the Clan move up to 2–3 on the season and 1–3 in conference play. The Clan looked to improve to even on season on Saturday, when they battled the last place Azusa Pacific Cougars on Terry Fox Field.

Clan embarasses Saints on home field

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Clan crush Saints, move up to seventh nationally

By Bryan Scott

 

The Clan is coming off a successful week where they knocked off the University of Mary Marauders and the Seattle Pacific Falcons. Their victims this time were the St. Martins University Saints (2–5 on the season).

It didn’t take long to start the assault against the Saints on Terry Fox Field in front of approximately 100 fans. In the seventh minute, freshman midfielder Alex Rowley crossed a corner kick which was one-timed by senior Michael Winter to give the Clan a 1–0 lead.  Rowley was back in his office, producing another assist off of a corner kick. This time it was defenceman and Red Lion Defensive Player of the Week Matt Besuschko, who cashed in with a header to put the Clan up 2–0 just 13 minutes into the game. Besuschko’s play impressed coach Alan Koch. “He fought through illness to help us contain an excellent SPU attack,” said Koch, “and he was the leader of a back four against SMU that limited them to very few opportunities.” Adam Staschuk added another goal from Ryan Dhillon before halftime. It was evident the Clan were the better team, as they dominated the shot totals 18–3 in the first half alone.

Ryan Dhillon continued to put up points in the second half. He scored twice in the 55th minute, putting the Clan up 5–0. Clan midfielder Justin Wallace, who finished the game with a goal and two assists, scored the final goal of the game. He had the same stats against the Falcons earlier in the week. The two goals and four assists earned him the Red Lion Offensive Player of the week. Wallace was modest about his award. “I thought the team played well this past week and this individual award is a bonus to go along with our great play,” said Wallace. Goaltender Hide Ozawa recorded two saves and the shutout for the Clan. The Clan badly outshot the Saints, 29–6 in the game.

Before last week, the Clan had dropped out of the national rankings, due to their loss to Northwest Nazarene Crusaders two weeks ago. The Clan vaulted up the standings with this impressive week. They are currently ranked seventh in the nation, with a record of 9–1. They sit alone on top of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, with a 5–1 record, just above the Crusaders, who are 4–0–2 in the conference.