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Aug 28, 2022; Colorado Springs, CO, USA; The UCCS Mountain Lions hosted the Fort Hays State University Tigers in menâ??s soccer at Mountain Lion Stadium. Credit: Isaiah J. Downing
Isaiah J. Downing

PREVIEW | Men’s Soccer Hosts Regis University for RMAC Quarterfinal Match

10/26/2022 10:15:00 AM

By: Tyler Tvelia, Assistant Sports Information Director
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
  • The No. 4 seed University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team will host their first postseason match since the 2016 season on Thursday, Oct. 27, as they welcome No. 5 seed Regis University to Mountain Lion Stadium for an RMAC Quarterfinal matchup at 5 p.m.
  • On the other side of the bracket, No. 3 seeded Westminster College is set to host No. 6 seed Colorado Christian University with kickoff for that Quarterfinal game being set at 6 p.m. from Dumke Field in Salt Lake City, Utah.
 
GAME COVERAGE  
2022 REGULAR SEASON IN REVIEW
  • The Mountain Lions opened their 2022 season with a challenging eight game non-conference schedule in which they went 5-1-2, including a 2-0 win over then No. 7 nationally ranked Fort Hays State University and a scoreless draw against current No. 6 ranked St. Mary's University.
  • UCCS continued their success into the early portion of their conference schedule, going 5-0-1 in their first six RMAC games with wins over Westminster, Regis, South Dakota Mines, Adams State, and Fort Lewis and a 1-1 draw against Colorado Mesa.
  • After extending their program record 12-game unbeaten streak with a scoreless draw against a scrappy Colorado Christian team on Oct. 13, UCCS finished their schedule with three consecutive one-goal losses, dropping a pair of 1-0 results to current No. 15 ranked Colorado School of Mines and No. 10 ranked CSU Pueblo before closing the regular season with a 2-1 setback against MSU Denver.
  • The Mountain Lions finish the regular season with a 10-4-4 overall record and a 5-3-2 record in the conference for a total of 17 points in the RMAC standings.
 
NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS
  • In the second release of the NCAA Men's Soccer Regional Rankings on Oct. 19, the UCCS Men's Soccer team was listed as the No. 12 team in Super Region 4. The third and final installment of the NCAA Regional Rankings is set to be released at approximately 1 p.m. on Nov. 2.
  • The top ten teams from each of the four super regions across the country will qualify for the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament. The South Central region, which includes the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and the Lone Star Conference (LSC), is combined with the West region that includes teams from the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC), and the Pacific West Conference to make up Super Region 4.
  • The field of 40 teams for the 2022 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship will be announced on Monday, Nov. 7 with the official NCAA Selection Show being live streamed on the NCAA website at 4 p.m. (MT).
 
RMAC LEADERS
  • As a team, the Mountain Lions finished at or near the top of the conference in most offensive and defensive categories. On the defensive side of the ball, UCCS matched CSU Pueblo atop the conference with a paltry 11 goals allowed in 18 games for a 0.61 team GAA. Offensively, the Mountain Lions finished the regular season ranked first in the conference for total shots (338) and corners (133), tied for third in assists (29) and points (107), and fourth in goals (39).
  • UCCS also concluded the regular season with the second largest goal differential in the league as they outscored their opponents by a margin of 28 goals (39-11), only trailing CSU Pueblo which tallied a plus-29 goal differential (40-11) for the regular season.
  • On an individual basis, senior forward Kolby Raineri broke out as one of the top-tier players in the RMAC as he finished the regular season leading the conference in points (30), assists (8), shots (68), and shots on goal (30) while ranking tied for third with a career-high 11 goals.
  • Raineri was joined on the RMAC leaderboard by graduate student Marvin Putu, who ended the regular season slate tied for fourth in assists (6), tied for fifth in goals (7), fifth in total points (20), and tied for second in game-winning goals (4).
  • In frame, community college transfer Declan Domyan started 17 of the teams 18 games for a total of 1,482:07 minutes and concluded the regular season as the RMAC leader with his 0.547 GAA, 0.852 save percentage, and seven individual clean sheets. Domyan also ended the year with the fourth-most saves in the conference with 52. 
 
RMAC AWARDS
  • Throughout the 2022 season, three UCCS student-athletes combined to record four RMAC Player of the Week honors, with Raineri earning RMAC Offensive Player of the Week accolades on Sept. 20 and Oct. 4, Domyan earning RMAC Goalkeeper of the Week honors on Sept. 27, and sophomore Bogdan Vedernikov being named the RMAC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 11.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
  • The Mountain Lions hold a record of 18-41-8 all-time against the Rangers but are 2-0 in their last two meetings against Regis, including a 3-1 victory earlier this season on Sept. 29.
  • In this season's meeting between the Rangers and the Mountain Lions, Regis grabbed an early lead with a goal in the 28th minute, but the UCCS offense came to life in the second half to score three goals and secure the 3-1 win.
 
SCOUTING REGIS
  • The Rangers concluded the regular season with an 8-8-2 overall record and a 5-3-2 record within the conference to match UCCS with 17 points. The Mountain Lions earned the tiebreaker by virtue of their head-to-head win earlier in the conference season.
  • Regis got off to a rocky start in their conference season, posting a 1-3-2 record in their first six RMAC games, but managed to finish the season on a four-game winning streak with wins against Westminster, Colorado Mesa, Fort Lewis, and Adams State to push their way to a 5-3-2 record and a postseason berth.
  • As a team, the Ranger's offense scored a total of 29 goals for an average of 1.61 per game. They managed to tally the third most shots in the conference 256 (14.2/game) and landed 119 of those shots on target for a 0.465 shot on goal percentage.
  • Defensively, Regis allowed 30 total goals (1.67/game) and permitted opponents to take 13.3 shots per game (239 total) as they finished the regular season with three clean sheets.
  • The RU offense is led by sophomore forward Rayhan Carlson-Du Toit, who finished the season in a tie for the league lead with 13 goals and 30 points. The New Zealand native also added four assists and landed 28 of his 42 shots on target for an impressive 0.667 shot on goal percentage.
  • Graduate student Kristian Hooker also played a large role in the Ranger's offense this season as he played in 17 games and tallied six goals and four assists for 15 points while also posting a notable 0.606 shot on goal percentage with 20 of his 33 total shots landing on frame.
  • The defensive duo of Sam Gardner (1,459 min.) and Kyle Bergmeier (1,280 min.) have each contributed major minutes to a Regis backline that showed signs of improvement down the stretch, limiting their opponents to just four goals in their final four games of the season.
  • Graduate student Luca Falagrady opened the season as the Ranger's starting goalkeeper and has posted a 2.09 GAA across 12 games and 1,035 minutes. Senior Greg L'Hommedieu started seven of the team's final nine games in frame, recording a 0.92 GAA with three shutouts and a 0.833 save percentage in 585 minutes played.
 
HOT TAKES
  • The Mountain Lion's plus-28 goal differential in the regular season ranked eighth in the nation. UCCS also finished the regular season among the top-ten in Division II with their 0.611 team GAA (7th), 7.39 corner kicks per game (4th), and 18.78 shots per game (4th).
  • In frame, Declan Domyan finished the regular season ranked as one of the top goalkeepers in the country as he placed in the top-ten of Division II for his 0.547 GAA (8th), 0.852 save percentage (7th) and 1,482:07 total minutes (8th). Domyan also tallied seven individual clean sheets, which was tied for the 11th most in the nation.
  • Domyan is also on his way to establishing himself as one of the top goalkeepers in program history as he is on pace to finish the season with the best single season GAA in program history and take over the lead in the career GAA standings. In addition, he already ranks tied for fifth all-time in career shutouts and tied for third in single season shutouts in program history.
  • The Mountain Lion's 12-game unbeaten streak from Sept. 3 through Oct. 13 marked a new program record, shattering the previous record of seven that was extablished from 9/20/98-10/23/98.
  • With 338 total shots through the regular season, UCCS has already broken the single season record of 327 shots that was established during the 2010 season. Their 136 shots on goal also rank as the second most in a single season, only trailing the 2014 team that recorded 144 shots on goal.
  • Fourth-year player Kolby Raineri has also etched his name in the UCCS history book this season, making his way into a tie for sixth place all-time in points (59), a tie for eighth all-time in goals (22), fourth all-time in assists (15) and shots on goal (78), and sixth all-time in shots (155).
 
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH LEWIS WILCOX
  • Head coach Lewis Wilcox is in his second season at the helm of the UCCS men's soccer program and has posted an overall record of 18-12-5. Under Wilcox, the Mountain Lions are set to make their first postseason appearance since the 2018 season with their quarterfinal matchup against Regis this Thursday.
  • In his first season at the head of the program during the fall 2021 season, the Cardiff, Wales, native led the team to an 8-8-1 overall record and saw Alex Andersson be named the RMAC Player of the Year along with earning First Team All-America honors.
 
TICKETS
  • All fans will be charged admission and are encouraged to purchase tickets online by Thursday at 3 p.m. Online ticket sales will not be available at the ticket gate at Mountain Lion Stadium. Fans who did not purchase tickets online in advance can purchase tickets at the gate (CASH ONLY). Students from Regis and/or UCCS will be granted free admission to the match by presenting a valid student ID at the ticket gate.
  • Ticket Prices:
    • Adults - $10.00
    • Over 65 - $5.00
    • Children - $5.00
    • Under 5 – Free
    • Students (With ID) – Free
 
WEATHER
  • Thursday's forecast calls for a daytime high of 41 degrees with a slight chance of rain and snow showers around game time, with the potential for north winds at 15-25 miles-per-hour. 
 
UP NEXT
  • The winner of the quarterfinal matchup between the Mountain Lions and the Rangers will advance to the RMAC Semifinal matchup against No. 1 seeded and No. 15 nationally ranked Colorado School of Mines on Sunday, Oct. 30. Kickoff for the semifinal match from Stermole Soccer Stadium is set for 2:30 p.m.
 
 
For everything UCCS Athletics, follow the Mountain Lions on social media and stay tuned to gomountainlions.com.
 
SOCIAL
Twitter – @GoMountainLions
Instagram – @gomountainlions
Facebook – GoMountainLions
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