Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

UCCS Athletics

MSOC Semifinal Preview 11.13.24

PREVIEW | Men’s Soccer Heads South for RMAC Semifinal Match at No. 1 Seed CSU Pueblo

11/12/2024 3:00:00 PM

By: Tyler Tvelia, Sports Information Director
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
  • Coming off a thrilling 2-1 double overtime win against Colorado School of Mines in the RMAC Quarterfinal round on Sunday, the No. 4 seed and No. 3 nationally ranked University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team is set to travel south to clash with No. 1 seed and No. 15 nationally ranked Colorado State University Pueblo on Wednesday, Nov. 13 in a semifinal showdown at 6 p.m. inside CSUP Art & Lorraine Soccer/Lacrosse Stadium.
  • In the semifinal matchup on the other side of the bracket, No. 2 seed Regis University will host No. 3 seed and No. 17 nationally ranked Fort Lewis College for a 6 p.m. kickoff at Regis Match Pitch in Denver, Colo.
GAME COVERAGE TICKETS
  • All fans will be charged admission and are encouraged to purchase tickets online on the RMAC website.
  • Ticket Prices:
    • General Admission - $15.00
    • Kids (6-17), Over 65 & Military - $10.00
    • Children 5 and Under – Free
RMAC NETWORK
  • Fans unable to attend in-person will be able to view each game of the RMAC Men's Soccer Tournament on the RMAC Network. The conference provides a variety of purchase options for postseason action, including day passes for $9.99 per day and tournament passes for $20. A full complement of the purchase options can be found here.
LAST TIME OUT
  • After finishing the regular season with a 13-1-4 overall record and a 6-1-3 record in conference play to earn the No. 4 seed in the RMAC Tournament, UCCS hosted No. 5 seed Colorado School of Mines for a quarterfinal matchup on Sunday, Nov. 10 that turned out to be an instant classic.
  • UCCS held Mines without a shot for the opening 30 minutes of action, but the Orediggers took full advantage of their first real scoring opportunity of the day in the 34th minute as Gabriel Rodriguez intercepted a pass from UCCS freshman Luke Noameshie and, after quickly making his way up the field, found Kian Mueller for the first score of the match.
  • Now trailing 1-0, the Mountain Lions found an equalizer just before the halftime break as Dani Barajas played a long free kick to the right side of the frame that was placed perfectly for Adin Schwenke and Nick Walker to connect on successive headers with the ball ending up in the net.
  • The second half began with both teams still tied at one goal apiece and saw plenty of action, including a red card for the Orediggers and an injury to the center referee, but neither team managed to find the nylon as the match headed into overtime. Both teams were held out of the net for the first overtime period, but UCCS wasted little time in the second OT to score the golden goal game-winner in the 102nd minute as Eduardo Macias played a perfect corner kick into the box, where Jack Souder was able to get a head on the ball and put it into the frame for a 2-1 win that pushed UCCS through to the semifinal round.
UNITED SOCCER COACHES NATIONAL RANKINGS
  • The Mountain Lions have risen to new heights this season, as they climbed as high as No. 3 in the ninth and final edition of the United Soccer Coaches National Poll, marking their hisghest national ranking in program history. 
  • After opening the season unranked in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll, UCCS jumped into the top 25 with a No. 24 ranking in Week 1 before climbing inside the top 10 in Week 2 with a No. 8 ranking. The Mountain Lions continued their climb in Week 3 as they moved up to No. 5 in the rankings and have maintained their position inside the top five for the past seven weeks.
2024 United Soccer Coaches Rankings
Preseason           Aug. 6               NR
Week 1                Sept. 10            #24
Week 2                Sept. 17            #8
Week 3                Sept. 24            #5
Week 4                Oct.  1                #4
Week 5                Oct.   8               #4
Week 6                Oct. 15              #4
Week 7                Oct. 22              #5
Week 8                Oct. 29              #5
Week 9                Nov. 5                #3   
 
NCAA REGIONAL RANKINGS
  • In the second edition of the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Regional Rankings that were released on Wednesday, Nov. 6, the UCCS Men's Soccer team earned a No. 3 ranking within Super Region 4.
  • 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 third and final set of regional rankings will be released by the NCAA tomorrow, Nov. 13, before the field of 40 teams for the 2024 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship is set to be announced on Monday, Nov. 18 with the official NCAA Selection Show being live streamed on the NCAA website at 4:30 p.m. (MT).
RMAC LEADERS
  • As a team, the Mountain Lions currently hold the top ranked defensive unit in the conference as they have recorded a 0.79 team GAA with just 15 goals in 19 games played. On the offensive side of the ball, UCCS is tied for the league lead with 41 total goals and 298 total shots on the season.
  • Midfielder Dani Barajas has established himself as one of the top offensive weapons in the conference during his senior season as he leads the league in goals (11) and sits tied for the conference lead in total points (26). Barajas also sits tied for second in the conference with three game-winning goals and tied for sixth with 19 shots on goal.
  • Juniors Nick Walker and Miles Seminario have proven to be key pieces to the Mountain Lions' high-powered offense as they both ranked inside the top 10 in the RMAC in goals scored with Walker tied for sixth overall with seven goals and Seminario tied for tenth with six goals. Seminario also finds himself among the league leaders in shots on goal as he currently ranks fifth in the category with 20 on the season.
  • Junior Soren Russell has turned in a spectacular season in frame for UCCS to this point as he has appeared in 18 games and logged 1,568 minutes of action while currently ranking second in the conference with a 0.861 GAA. The native of Bellevue, Wash., is also currently second in the league in save percentage (0.795) and third in individual clean sheets (5), while collecting 58 saves.
RMAC AWARDS
  • Throughout the 2024 season, the UCCS men's soccer team had four student-athletes earn weekly conference awards with senior Dani Barajas (9/17) and junior Miles Seminario (10/1) earning RMAC Offensive Player of the Week honors, freshman Dillon Clarke (10/29) collecting RMAC Defensive Player of the Week accolades, and junior Soren Russell (10/1) securing RMAC Goalkeeper of the Week honors.
  • Six Mountain Lions earned recognition on the 2024 RMAC Men's Soccer All-Academic teams on Monday, Nov. 11 with Seminario and Russell both being named to the first team and Manny Loya, Adin Schwenke, Jack Souder, and Dalton Uehling all being tabbed to the honor roll.
  • The conference will announce their All-RMAC teams and major awards for the 2024 season on Friday, Nov. 15, at 10 a.m.
ALL-TIME SERIES
  • UCCS holds a 36-26-7 all-time record against CSU Pueblo and has recorded a 1-0-1 record against the ThunderWolves in two previous matchups this season.
  • The first meeting of the season between the two squads was a non-conference battle on Sept. 29 in Pueblo, Colo., that saw the then No. 5 nationally ranked Mountain Lions earn a 2-1 victory over then No. 9 nationally ranked CSU Pueblo. UCCS opened the scoring in the fourth minute off a header from Seminario but allowed the ThunderWolves to score the equalizer in the 44th minute to send the game to halftime tied. Despite both teams having multiple scoring opportunities in the second half, it was the Mountain Lions that scored the game-winning goal off a penalty kick look in the 71st minute to secure their first victory against the ThunderWolves since the 2019 season.
  • In the second meeting this season, which was a conference matchup that took place less than one week ago on Nov. 6, the Mountain Lions found themselves with a first half lead as Nick Walker netted a 35th minute goal that put UCCS ahead 1-0. The Mountain Lions maintained their advantage for almost the entire remainder of the match, but in the 89th minute, Caio Oliveria found Shjon Andrews for a header goal off a corner kick that equalized the match and sent the teams to a 1-1 draw.
SCOUTING CSU PUEBLO
  • The ThunderWolves enter Wednesday's semifinal matchup with a 12-3-3 overall record and a 7-1-2 conference record that was good for 23 points and the RMAC Regular Season title.
  • As a team, CSU Pueblo sits just behind UCCS in team GAA for the conference lead with a mark of 0.83 as they have surrendered 15 goals in 18 games played. Offensively, the ThunderWolves have matched the Mountain Lions in total goals with 41 but hold a slight edge in goals per game (2.28-2.16) as they have played one fewer game.
  • Midfielder Caio Oliveira has been at the center of the offensive attack for CSU Pueblo throughout the season as he ranks tied for the league lead with 26 points off seven goals and 12 assists.
  • Tobi Osifodunrin is the leading goal-scorer for the ThunderWolves with eight on the season as he also ranks second on the team with 19 points. Shjon Andrews and Jose Bustamente have also been integral parts of the offense for CSU Pueblo, recording 16 and 13 points, respectively.
  • Ruben Volkert has served as the primary goalkeeper for the ThunderWolves this season, making 16 starts and logging 1,350 minutes played with a 0.87 GAA that ranks third in the RMAC. He has recorded four individual clean sheets and two combined clean sheets while collecting 30 saves.
UCCS UNDER HEAD COACH LEWIS WILCOX
  • Head coach Lewis Wilcox is currently in his fourth season at the helm of the UCCS men's soccer program and has posted an exceptional 43-20-14 overall record. Under Wilcox, the Mountain Lions are set to make an appearance in the RMAC Semifinal round for the third consecutive season.
  • Across his first three seasons at the helm of the men's soccer program, Wilcox led the Mountain Lions to a 29-19-10 overall record while coaching the team to a pair of RMAC Semifinal appearances and their first ever selection to the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament. Under his guidance, UCCS student-athletes have collected 13 All-RMAC honors, including five first team accolades, five second team selections, and three honorable mentions. In addition, Wilcox's resume features a pair of RMAC major awards, including the 2021 RMAC Player of the Year in Alex Andersson and the 2022 Co-Freshman of the Year in Matteo Moreno Madrid.
  • The Mountain Lions have also been well-represented at the regional and national levels during his time at the head of the program, securing eight D2CCA All-Region honors, three United Soccer Coaches All-Region accolades, and one D2CCA All-American (Alex Andersson – 2021 First Team).
  • In addition, UCCS men's soccer has flourished academically with the leadership of Wilcox, securing six RMAC All-Academic First Team honors, five College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District accolades, and one CSC Academic All-America award (Kolby Raineri – 2022 Third Team).
WEATHER
  • The forecast for kickoff in Pueblo, Colo., calls for clear skies with temperatures in the mid-30s and very little wind.
UP NEXT
  • The winner of Wednesday's semifinal matchup will advance to the RMAC Championship game, where they will face off against the winner of the semifinal match on the other side of the bracket featuring No. 2 seed Regis and No. 3 seed Fort Lewis. The conference championship match will be played at the site of the highest remaining seed on either Saturday, Nov. 16 or Sunday, Nov. 17.
For everything UCCS Athletics, follow the Mountain Lions on social media and stay tuned to gomountainlions.com.
 
SOCIAL
Twitter – @GoMountainLions
Instagram – @gomountainlions
Facebook – GoMountainLions
 
Print Friendly Version