COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team netted a pair of early goals on Thursday evening at Mountain Lion Stadium and held on for a convincing 3-1 victory over Regis University to advance to the RMAC Semifinal for the first time since 2018.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: UCCS 3, REGIS 1
Records: UCCS (11-4-4, 5-3-2 RMAC), REGIS (8-9-2, 5-3-2 RMAC)
Facility: Mountain Lion Stadium | Colorado Springs, Colo.
All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions improve to 19-41-8 against Regis and are 3-0 in their last two meetings with the Rangers. UCCS also moves to 2-1 in their last three playoff meetings against the Rangers.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:      

• Thursday evening's RMAC Quarterfinal match got off to a quick start with both teams pushing the offensive tempo as the Rangers and Mountain Lions combined for six shots in the opening five minutes of action.
• In the eighth minute, junior Alex Andersson capitalized on UCCS' fifth shot of the evening as he worked his way through traffic inside the goalie box and finished with a right footed shot into the back of the net to put the Mountain Lions ahead 1-0.
• Andersson would continue make an impact on the game in the 25^th minute as he fired a shot on goal that was deflected off the Regis goalkeeper directly to freshman Miles Seminario, who collected the rebound and put the ball in the back of the nylon to extend the UCCS lead to 2-0.
• UCCS would keep the offensive pressure going for the remainder of the first half, outshooting the Rangers 4-3 in the final 20 minutes, but the score would remain at 2-0 entering the intermission.
• Coming out of the break, UCCS continued to put pressure on the Rangers as they took the first five shots of the half and earned four corner kicks in the first eight minutes of second half action.
• The momentum would shift to the side of the Rangers in the 56^th minute with Elias Taubo, Kevin Cela, and Michael Jimenez testing the UCCS defense with three shots on goal in a two-minute span, the first and third of which resulting in team saves that saw Carlos Vargas and Cole Van Holland, respectively, guarding the net with UCCS goalkeeper Declan Domyan having vacated his position in frame.  
• After a straight red card called on Regis defender Diego Berumen near the box in the 84^th minute set UCCS up with a free kick from less than 20 yards out, Ben Ashfield put the game away with a strike into the right corner of the net off the free kick to make it a 3-0 advantage for the Mountain Lions.
• Regis would get on the board in the 88^th minute with a penalty kick that was granted due to a handball inside the box, but the deficit was too large to overcome as UCCS punched their ticket to the next round for a rematch against the Orediggers of Colorado School of Mines on Sunday in the RMAC Semifinal game.

 
STATS FROM THE GAME:

• UCCS outshot the Rangers 22-19 and held an 8-6 advantage in corner kicks, but Regis paced the match with ten shots on goal to the Mountain Lions six.
• Andersson led the team with three points off an assist and his first goal of the 2022 season. The junior forward also paced the squad with his four total shots and three shots on goal.
• Ashfield netted his first goal of the season with his successful free kick opportunity in the 84^th minute, while Seminario scored for the second consecutive game with his second goal of the season.
• Three additional Mountain Lion players notched three shots apiece, including Matteo Moreno Madrid, Lars Walczyk, and Miles Seminario.
• On the defensive end, Cole Van Holland, Noah Espino-Kennedy, and Moreno Madrid each played the full 90 minutes on the pitch.
• Domyan also logged a complete 90-minute performance in frame, grabbing seven saves and allowing just one goal that came on the penalty kick opportunity for the Rangers.

 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:

• The quarterfinal victory marks the first playoff win for the UCCS men's soccer program since the 2018 RMAC Quarterfinal game when they defeated Regis by a score of 5-3.
• Prior to this evening's match, the RMAC announced their 2022 All-Conference teams and individual major awards. UCCS garnered six All-RMAC selections, with Kolby Raineri, Marvin Putu, and Carlos Vargas being named to the First Team, Declan Domyan and Lars Walczyk earning Second Team honors, and Matteo Moreno Madrid being listed as an Honorable Mention. Moreno Madrid also came away as the RMAC Co-Freshman of the Year.  

 
UP NEXT:

• With the win, the Mountain Lions advance to the next round of the RMAC Tournament and will prepare to matchup with No. 1 seed and No. 15 nationally ranked Colorado School of Mines on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in the semifinal game.

 
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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. Read Full Article