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Isaiah J. Downing

PREVIEW | Men’s Soccer Returns Home to Host CCU and No. 22 CSM

10/20/2021 1:00:00 PM

By: Tyler Tvelia, Assistant Sports Information Director
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUPS
  • The University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team returns home to play host for a pair of important conference games beginning with a matchup against Colorado Christian University at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 21. UCCS will then battle No. 22 ranked Colorado School of Mines at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 24th as the Mountain Lions celebrate their graduating student-athletes on Senior Day.
 
GAME COVERAGE  
LAST TIME OUT
  • The Mountain Lions played a pair of conference games last week, picking up a 2-1 victory on Thursday night against Adams State before dropping a 4-3 decision to Fort Lewis on Sunday afternoon.
  • Adams State took the Mountain Lions to double overtime on Thursday night after scoring a goal in the 90th minute to tie the game at one, but a golden goal from Kolby Raineri in the 107th minute helped UCCS claim a 2-1 victory over the Grizzlies.
  • The Mountain Lions recorded a season-high 28 shots in the game against Adams State, and each of the thirteen position players to get into the game logged at least one shot.
  • Adin Schwenke, Kolby Raineri, and Luka Cecic tied for the team lead with four shots each while the UCCS backline limited the Grizzlies to eleven total shots and just three shots on goal.
  • UCCS and Fort Lewis engaged in a back-and-forth match on Sunday afternoon as the Skyhawks came out on top with a pair of late goals to take a 4-3 win.
  • After 25 scoreless minutes to start the match, a scoring barrage ensued with the Mountain Lions getting on the board first in the 26th minute on a goal from Alex Andersson before the Skyhawks quickly responded to tie the game in the 29th minute. UCCS would jump ahead again in the 33rd minute, but Fort Lewis struck back just minutes before the half with the equalizer.
  • Six minutes into the second half, the Mountain Lions regained the lead on a converted penalty kick by Andersson, but after holding on to the lead for the majority of the second half, surrendered goals in the 83rd and 87th minutes as the Skyhawks walked away with a 4-3 victory.
  • Redshirt senior Liam McGuire paced the Mountain Lions with five shots, while Andersson recorded his seventh and eighth goals of the season. Raineri scored for his second consecutive game, picking up his fifth goal of the season.

RMAC RECORD/STANDINGS
  • With a 1-1 record last week, the Mountain Lions move to 7-5-1 overall this season and 3-3 in conference play.
  • Entering this week's action, the Mountain Lions sit in a five-way tie for the No. 4-6 spots in the conference standings with CSU Pueblo, Regis, Fort Lewis, and Westminster each having earned nine points.
  • No. 11 nationally ranked Colorado Mesa and No. 22 Colorado School of Mines sit tied atop the conference with 18 points each, followed by Colorado Christian with 12 points in the No. 3 position.
 
RMAC LEADERS
  • The Mountain Lions rank fourth in the RMAC in scoring, averaging 1.92 goals and 6.08 shots on goal per game.
  • Sophomore Alex Andersson leads the RMAC in goals per game (1.33), points per game (2.67) and shots on goal per game (2.17) while ranking tied for third in total shots per game (3.00).
  • Junior Kolby Raineri ranks tied for second in the conference with 20 shots on goal and fourth in total shots with 35. Raineri also sits in the top ten in the RMAC in goals (5), game-winning goals (2) and points (12).
  • Sophomore Andreas Kokoska leads all RMAC goalkeepers with 1,208 minutes played this season and has grabbed the third most saves (48) while holding a GAA of 1.86.
 
THE SERIES
  • The Mountain Lions are 46-6-3 all-time against CCU but dropped a 2-1 decision against the Cougars earlier this season to snap a 23-game winning streak in the matchup.
  • UCCS holds an all-time record of 15-43-3 against Colorado School of Mines and will look to snap an eight-game downslide against the Orediggers on Sunday.
 
SCOUTING COLORADO CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
  • CCU enters the week on a three-game winning streak and a holds a 10-2-0 overall record (4-2 RMAC) after grabbing a pair of 1-0 wins over Regis and South Dakota Mines last week.
  • The Cougars have outscored opponents 19-14 this season and have held opposing teams to just a .371 shot on goal percentage (46-124).
  • Senior Liam Lakey leads Colorado Christian in multiple offensive categories, pacing the team in goals (6), points (12), shots (29) and shots on goal (15).
  • Sophomore Gabe Roloff has also been a potent offensive weapon for the Cougars this season, scoring four goals and recording ten points.
  • Defender Caiden Dixon leads CCU with 1,061 minutes played and has contributed to a backline that has allowed just 1.17 goals per game this season.
  • Max Collingwood (7 starts) and Michel Pinoncely (5 starts) have split time in frame with each goalkeeper snagging 14 saves. Pinoncely has recorded a 1.60 GAA in 450 minutes while Collingwood boasts a 0.85 GAA in 636 minutes played.
 
SCOUTING NO. 22 COLORADO SCHOOL OF MINES
  • No. 22 nationally ranked Colorado School of Mines won both of their matches last week against South Dakota Mines and Regis to push their winning streak to seven games. The Orediggers enter the week with an 11-3-0 overall record and sit in a tie atop the RMAC with a 6-0 conference record.
  • The Orediggers have outscored opposing teams 38-13 this season and have averaged 16.5 shots per game while holding opponents to just 7.8 shots per game.
  • Graduate student Lucas King is the leading point scorer for Mines with 15 as he has recorded three goals and an RMAC-leading nine assists.
  • Freshman Gabe Rodriguez leads CSM with six goals in just 293 minutes played, followed by Tristan Semelsberger with five and John Burnett with four.
  • Defensively, graduate student Patrick Allan has played a team-leading 1,080 minutes for an Orediggers backline that has held opponents to just 0.93 goals per game.
  • Brian Doherty and Kenneth Symmes have been the primary goalkeepers for CSM with Doherty logging 686 minutes across eight starts with a 0.79 GAA and Symmes registering 585 minutes over six starts with a 1.08 GAA.
 
HOT TAKES
  • As a team, the Mountain Lions lead all NCAA Division II institutions with eight converted penalty kicks this season.
  • Sophomore Alex Andersson paces UCCS with eight goals and 16 points despite playing just 308 minutes thus far. The native of Helsingborg, Sweden is averaging one goal every 38.5 minutes.
  • Midfielder Kolby Raineri leads the Mountain Lions in shots (35), shots on goal (20) and assists (2) while ranking second on the team in goals (5) and minutes played (1,084).
  • Redshirt senior Kaydon Zamora-Reeves has recorded the most minutes of any UCCS position player with 1,098 and has played full minutes in eight of the Mountain Lions 13 matches.
  • Andreas Kokoska has played every minute in frame for UCCS this season (1,208:49), pulling in 48 saves and registering a 1.86 GAA with three shutouts.
 
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH LEWIS WILCOX
  • Interim Head Coach Lewis Wilcox moves to 7-5-1 in his career at the helm of the UCCS men's soccer program. Wilcox is currently in his first season leading the program after spending two seasons as an assistant coach for the Mountain Lions.
  • In his second season as an assistant coach at UCCS in 2020-2021, Wilcox helped the men's soccer team navigate unfamiliar territory as the 2020 fall season was postponed to the spring of 2021. In the shortened six-game season, Wilcox played an integral part in overseeing a pair of All-RMAC recipients and six RMAC All-Academic honors. He also served as a key mentor for 2020-2021 RMAC Freshman of the Year Alex Andersson, who finished his debut season leading the team in points (9) and assists (3) while tying for the team lead in goals (3).
 
WEATHER
  • The weather for Thursday's match is projected to be partly cloudy with a daytime high of 68 degrees, an overnight low of 39 degrees, and winds blowing at 5 to 10 miles-per-hour.
  • On Sunday afternoon the weather is forecasted to be mostly sunny with a high near 69 degrees and Southern winds at 10 to 20 miles-per-hour.
 
UPCOMING GAMES
  • The Mountain Lions will close out their regular season schedule on the road next week as they travel to take on CSU Pueblo at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 27 before heading up north to battle MSU Denver in the season finale at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 31.
 
SOCIAL
Twitter - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions 
Facebook – Go Mountain Lions
 
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics. 
 
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