AUSTIN, Texas – The No. 20 nationally ranked University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team escaped Lewis-Chen Family Field with a narrow 1-0 victory over St. Edward's University on Thursday afternoon with first-year Mountain Lion Jacob Fitzgerald scoring the deciding goal in the 79^th minute.  
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: #20 UCCS 1, SEU 0
Records: UCCS (3-0-0, 0-0-0 RMAC), SEU (0-2-0, 0-0-0 LSC)
Facility: Lewis-Chen Family Field | Austin, Texas
All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions improve to 2-2-1 all-time against the Hilltoppers.  
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Despite an empty scoreboard in the first half, the Mountain Lions saw plenty of offensive opportunities through the opening 45 minutes of play, beginning in the 19^th minute when Marvin Putu fired a free kick off the crossbar and came up just inches away from giving UCCS a lead.
• The offensive chances continued to come up in the 26^th minute as Lars Walczyk swiped the ball from the defense and played it up the field to Kolby Raineri, who found himself in a one-on-one matchup with the SEU goalkeeper. Raineri would take the shot, but it was deflected by the goalkeeper to keep the game scoreless. Less than a minute later, UCCS had yet another opportunity for their first goal of the game as Walczyk once again gained control of the ball and fired toward the net, however, the ball again bounced harmlessly off the right post to keep the game even at zero.  
• The first 30 minutes of the second half were similar to that of the first half with both teams squandering opportunities to break onto the scoreboard, but the Mountain Lions finally broke through in the 79^th minute with redshirt senior Kolby Raineri feeding a quick pass deep into the box for midfielder Jacob Fitzgerald to tap into the net for a 1-0 lead.
• UCCS would continue their stellar defensive effort for the final ten minutes of the match to maintain their 1-0 advantage and remain unbeaten on the season.

STATS FROM THE GAME

• Fitzgerald scored the lone goal of the match for the Mountain Lions while also adding two shots and one shot on goal in 57 minutes of action.
• Raineri tallied his first assist of the season on Fitzgerald's goal and led the team with three shots in 83 minutes on the pitch.
• Overall, the Mountain Lions were outshot by St. Edward's 14-9 while the Hilltoppers also paced the match with eight shots on goal to just two for UCCS.
• UCCS goalkeeper Soren Russell put together an outstanding 90 minute performance as he earned his second clean sheet of the season while tallying up eight saves.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• With his assist on the game-winning goal, Raineri recorded his 16^th career assist, which sits tied for third all-time in program history.
• The UCCS men's soccer team moved into the national rankings for the first time this season as they were selected at No. 20 in the Week 1 United Soccer Coaches National Poll after being unranked in the organization's preseason poll. The Mountain Lions rose as high as No. 17 in the last season as they made their first appearance in the USC national rankings since the 1999 season.

UP NEXT

• The Mountain Lions are set to continue their road trip in the Lone Star State on Saturday, Sept. 9, as they take part in a showdown against No. 3 nationally ranked St. Mary's University. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. (MT) from Sigma Beta Chi Field in San Antonio, Texas.

 
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics. 
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