COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The No. 1 seed University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team defeats No. 2 seed MSU Denver in the RMAC Championship match inside Mountain Lion Stadium. A goal from Miles Seminario in the 86th minute pushed the Mountain Lions to a 3-2 advantage over the Roadrunners.
INSIDE THE MATCH-UP
Final: UCCS 3, MSU Denver 2
Records: UCCS (11-5-4, 7-2-1 RMAC), MSU Denver (10-5-5, 7-2-1 RMAC)
Facility: Mountain Lion Stadium | Colorado Springs, Colo.
All-Time Series: Saturday afternoon's matchup against the Roadrunners was the 67th in UCCS program history. UCCS is now 16-45-6 in the total series and 2-3-1 in the series under current head coach
Lewis Wilcox.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- MSUD kicked off the match and had an early scoring opportunity in the fifth minute of play. Charlie Lucero lobbed a ball from the left side of the pitch, connecting with Riley Liston for the header shot. The ball sailed just inches over the crossbar and the match continued on as a 0-0 draw.
- The Roadrunners capitalized on their momentum and scored their first goal in the 17th minute. Lucero sent another cross into the box which was deflected by a UCCS player, but it was not enough to stop Rhyson Johnston from 1-touching it into the goal. The Mountain Lions responded quickly with a shot attempt by Soulo Letsoalo towards the lower right corner of the goal, but the ball was saved by a dive from MSUD goalkeeper Nick McNeil.
- UCCS nearly tied up the match 35 minutes later with a signature long throw-in from Miles Seminario in line with the top of the box. Luke Noameshie found himself wide open on the backside and blasted a shot towards goal, but sailed the ball wide of the left goal post.
- Freshman forward Johnston was able to net his second goal of the day 13 minutes after the second half began, giving the Roadrunners a 2-0 advantage over the Mountain Lions.
- UCCS broke their scoring dry spell in the 71st minute after MSUD midfielder James Doidge committed a foul in the Roadrunner's box. Jack Cook confidently stepped up to the plate and buried his penalty kick shot into the lower left corner of the goal. 15 minutes later, Cook netted his second goal of the match, assisted by Mountain Lion goalkeeper Hugo Sjoberg.
- Just nine seconds later, senior forward Miles Seminario scored a stunning goal, slipping the ball past McNeil's fingertips in a 1v1 situation and pushing the Mountain Lions ahead by one. UCCS' three-man defense held strong for the last three minutes of play, and the match ended with a 3-2 victory for the Mountain Lions on their home turf.
STATS FROM THE GAME
- The Mountain Lions led in corner kicks five to three. UCCS also led in shots, logging a total of 16 compared to MSUD's eight.
- Senior forward Miles Seminario led the Mountain Lions in shots, recording five total and putting a single goal in the back of the net.
- Junior forward Jack Cook led UCCS in scoring, netting a goal in the 86th and 71st minute.
- Goalkeeper Hugo Sjöberg logged the entire 90 minutes and faced eight shots, recording four saves during the match.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- When meeting in regular-season conference play this last October, UCCS defeated the Roadrunners 3-0 inside Mountain Lion Stadium. Seniors Nick Walker (21'), Miles Seminario (65'), and Gael Hernandez (83') each scored a single goal during the match.
- The Mountain Lions will be making their first appearance in the RMAC Tournament Championship match since the 2014 fall season under head coach Johnnie Keen. During that time, UCCS defeated Colorado Mesa 3-0 in the semifinal match and drew a 3-3 result against Colorado School of Mines in the championship match before falling in penalty kicks.
- Jack Cook was named the RMAC Tournament MVP while Luke Noameshie, Eduardo Macias, Miles Seminario, Cole Wearner, and Hugo Sjöberg were named to all All-Tournament Team.
UP NEXT
- The NCAA Division II Selection Show will air at 5 pm (MST) at NCAA.com on Monday, November 17.
SOCIAL
X – @GoMountainLions
Instagram – @gomountainlions
Facebook – /GoMountainLions
For everything UCCS Athletics, follow the Mountain Lions on social media and stay tuned to gomountainlions.com. 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.
