COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer (6-5 / 5-3 RMAC) begins the final home week tonight when the Mountain Lions go for a sweep of Colorado State-Pueblo (4-6-1 / 2-5-1 RMAC) in Mountain Lion Stadium in the second set of games in the Steel and Silver Series. Action is scheduled to get underway at 7 p.m.
The Mountain Lions have posted shutouts in two of the last three home games, against Colorado Christian on Friday night and Colorado Mines on Sept. 28. Last season's home game against the Thunderwolves was also a 3-0 shutout for the Mountain Lions.
Costa is fourth in Mountain Lion career records with seven shutouts in three seasons and fourth in season records with three. He posted the other shutout against Adams State on the road on Sept. 26, which UCCS will face again on Friday night at home.
Tonight's game won't clinch a spot in the RMAC tournament for UCCS, but it could make it easier for the Mountain Lions to do so. The Mountain Lions are in third in the conference standings with six games left in the regular season, and eight points ahead of seventh-place Colorado State-Pueblo. A win tonight would provide an 11-point cushion against the Thunderwolves with five games left, and provide a much easier route for the Mountain Lions to advance to the postseason tournament.
UCCS won the first game of the season against the Thunderwolves in a 2-1 contest in Pueblo on Sept. 30, with both goals coming from
Mash Shaswar. The lone goal was given up on a penalty kick in the 89th minute, and the game wrapped up a three-game week for the Mountain Lions that earned Costa RMAC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
The Mountain Lions hold a 4-0 advantage in the Steel and Silver Series standings after a sweep by the men's and women's teams in Pueblo last month. The series awards the Steel and Silver Trophy to the institution with the performances in head-to-head competition among the 10 sports that the two schools both sponsor (men's and women's soccer, women's cross country, volleyball, men's golf, women's indoor track and field, men's and women's basketball, softball and women's outdoor track and field).
