San Jose Earthquakes goalkeeper Pat Onstad was named Honda MLS Player of the Week by the Professional Soccer Reporters Association (PSRA) for the week ending May 15, 2004 (Week 7). The 36-year-old made 10 saves in a 2-1 victory over the Dallas Burn in a highly charged, end-to-end affair on Saturday.
Onstad, who conceded five goals the weekend before in a 5-5 draw against the MetroStars, made a slew of saves to keep the Burn off the board as Dallas tested San Jose with consistent offensive pressure throughout the game. He was first called upon less than a minute into play, charging out to make a block on a point-blank range Eric Quill attempt. Minutes later, Onstad reached high on another Quill shot that was deflected on its path to goal.
In the 41st minute, with the Earthquakes holding on to a 1-0 lead, Onstad was forced to make another diving stop on a rocket from Eddie Johnson as the Burn attempted to turn around a quick counter. Onstad repeated the feat within minutes, denying Brad Davis his first goal of the season.
"Coming off of last week, just getting a win like this is important," Onstad said following the game. "We are happy to get the points. They put a lot of pressure on us but I thought we played well enough to win tonight."
The Canadian International earns his third career MLS Player of the Week award, having also won the award in the second week of this season, as well as in Week 6 of the 2003 season. He joins Nick Rimando (2002) and Brad Friedel (1996) as the only goalkeepers in MLS history to capture the award more than once in a season.
During the 2003 campaign, his debut season in the League, Onstad was the leader in every significant goalkeeping category in MLS for the majority of the season on his way to capturing Goalkeeper of the Year honors. Among goalkeepers who played 15 or more matches, he also recorded the best goals against average of 1.04 and broke the Earthquakes club record with a League-leading nine shutouts. He is the third goalkeeper in San Jose history to be recognized as Player of the Week (Joe Cannon - 2000, Dave Salzwedel - 1997, Onstad - 2003 / 2004).
Onstad was selected ahead of forwards Jaime Moreno of D.C. United and Edson Buddle of the Columbus Crew for this week's award. The Honda Major League Soccer Player of the Week is selected every week throughout the MLS regular season by a panel of journalists from the Professional Soccer Reporters Association (PSRA).
2004 PLAYER OF THE WEEK WINNERS:
Week 1: Jaime Moreno (D.C. United)
Week 2: Pat Onstad (San Jose Earthquakes)
Week 3: Fabian Taylor (MetroStars)
Week 4: Carlos Ruiz (Los Angeles Galaxy)
Week 5: Henry Ring (Chicago Fire)
Week 6: Jovan Kirovski (Los Angeles Galaxy)
Week 7: Pat Onstad (San Jose Earthquakes)
