SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster men's soccer team is back in action this weekend with a trip to Montana for a pair of Frontier Conference games. The Griffins will begin the week in Billings, Mont. on Friday for a 3:30 p.m. MT meeting with Rocky Mountain (Mont.). They will then play at Great Falls (Mont.) on Sunday at noon in Great Falls, Mont.
 
There will be live stats available of the game on Sunday at Great Falls.
 
Griffins Notebook
Westminster enters the final regular season road trip of the season at 8-6-1 overall and 2-1 in the Frontier Conference. They have gone 3-3 in road games this season. The Griffins are coming off a 4-1 win at Carroll (Mont.) on Oct. 1 where they snapped a four-game losing skid.
 
The Griffins have scored 23 goals on the year and they are averaging 1.53 goals per game. The team is taking 10.6 shots per game with 47.2 percent of those attempts on goal. Westminster is 4-0-1 on the year when taking more shots than the opposition. They have recorded 15 assists and taken 68 corner kicks this season.
 
Westminster opponents have scored 14 goals for an average of 0.93 goals per game. The Griffins have allowed more than one goal in a game only three times during the year, but they have surrendered a goal in six straight outings. The opposition takes 14.13 shots per game with 39.6 percent of them on goal.
 
Jonnathan Rodriguez leads all Griffins with four goals and he is third on the team with eight points. Andrew Clayton leads the team with 11 points behind three goals and a team-best five assists. Connor Thompson has three goals and three assists for nine points. Manuel Duenas has recorded four assists.
 
Three different Griffins have appeared in goal this season with Logan Butzier posting a team-best 0.86 goals-against-average. He has made 35 saves with five wins, three shutouts and a .854 save percentage. Sean Lyne has recorded 25 saves with a 0.96 GAA and Taylor Ruff has a 0.96 GAA with nine saves.
 
About Rocky Mountain
Rocky Mountain enters the week at 7-7 overall and 1-1 in the conference. They have been hot of late, winning six of their last seven games. The Battlin' Bears are scoring 1.93 goals per game while they attempt 11.57 shots per contest. They have scored at least one goal in seven consecutive games with multiple goals in six of those outings. Jack Clancy leads the team and is 24th in the NAIA with 11 goals and he is 26th national by scoring 0.85 goals per game. Sean Flynn has a 1.45 goals-against-average with a .690 save percentage.
 
About Great Falls
Great Falls begins the week at 14-2 overall and they are 4-0 in Frontier Conference play. The Argonauts have gone 11-1 in the past 12 games, including a nine-game winning streak at one point. They have scored in all but one game this season with multiple goals in 10 contests. They rank 32nd in the country with 32 goals and 40th with 25 assists. Christoffer Bisbo leads the Argos with seven goals with Jordan Byland scoring five. Jose Pena has recorded a 0.73 GAA with a .730 save percentage as team has nine shutouts to rank third in the NAIA.
 
Record Streak
After allowing a goal to Carroll (Mont.) at the 10:31 mark of the season opener, Westminster didn't surrender a goal for the next 558:36 minutes of action. They established new school records for consecutive shutout minutes and also for consecutive shutouts at five. They currently place 17th in the NAIA with six shutouts on the season while also placing 24th in the national by giving up 0.93 goals per game.
 
Spreading the Wealth
The 23 goals scored by the Griffins this season have come from 12 different players with 14 players recording at least one point during the year. Freshman Jonnathan Rodriguez currently leads the team with his four goals, having scored all of them in the past seven games. Andrew Clayton, Michael Porter and Connor Thompson have all scored three goals apiece with Clayton and Thompson tied for the team lead with a pair of game-winning goals.
 
Sharing the Rock
Westminster has been playing more of a possession game in 2014 and it has translated to 15 assists on the team's 23 goals scored this season. Three players have accounted for 12 of those assists with Clayton leading the way with five assists. Manuel Duenas has tallied four assists and Thompson getting three helpers.
 
Three-Headed Monster
The goalkeeper combination of Logan Butzier, Sean Lyne, and Taylor Ruff has combined to make 70 saves with a .833 save percentage this season. The group has posted a 0.91 goals-against-average with six shutouts. Butzier leads the team with his 0.86 GAA and five wins. Lyne has posted two shutouts and 25 saves for a 0.96 GAA while Ruff has nine saves and a 0.96 GAA.
 
Second Half Success
Westminster has been stellar in the second half of games this season. The Griffins have scored 16 goals after intermission which accounts for 69.6 percent of their total goals scored.  Despite the scoring totals, the Griffins have been outshot 109-85 after the first 45 minutes. The Griffins are 8-0 on the year when they hold the lead at the 75-minute mark.
 
Climbing the NAIA Wins Chart
With eight wins this season, head coach Chris Dorich now has 282 wins in his Westminster career. He currently ranks eighth in the NAIA among active coaches in that category. Dorich is in his 31st season at the helm of the Westminster program and is one of three NAIA coaches across the country with 30 years at one school.
 
Home Cooking
Over the years, Westminster has been tough to beat at home. The Griffins have compiled a winning record at home every year since 2001 and only had a losing record at home four times in 30 seasons. Since Dumke Field opened in 2005, Westminster has gone 60-22-5 on the home turf. This season, Westminster is 5-2-1 at home and they have outscored the opposition 12-3 in those games.
 
Looking Ahead
Westminster will close the regular season on Nov. 2 when they host Rocky Mountain at Dumke Field. The final home game will feature a senior presentation prior to the 1:30 p.m. MT start.