BURNABY, B.C. – The No. 4 nationally ranked University of Colorado Colorado Springs men's soccer team overcame an early deficit on Saturday afternoon as
Eduardo Macias found the back of the net late in the opening half to help the Mountain Lions secure a 1-1 draw against Simon Fraser University.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: #4 UCCS 1, SFU 1
Records: UCCS (4-0-2, 0-0-0 RMAC), SFU (1-1-2, 0-0-0 GNAC)
Facility: SFU Stadium at Terry Fox Field | Burnaby, B.C.
All-Time Series: Saturday's matchup marked the first-ever meeting between the Mountain Lions and the Red Leafs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Simon Fraser came out of the gates aggressively as they created a frenzy of attacking opportunities across the opening five minutes of action. UCCS goalkeeper Hugo Sjöberg was called into action less than a minute into the match to turn aside a low shot from Shahbod Jafary before the Red Leafs added three more attempts in the opening stage of the match, including a dangerous strike from Kundalini Bien-Aimé Dominique that rattled off the right post. UCCS settled into the match from there, with Eduardo Macias generating the Mountain Lions' first two looks at the frame in the seventh and tenth minutes with the first being blocked and the second going off target.
- The Red Leafs earned a golden opportunity to break the scoreless tie in the 18th minute when they were awarded a penalty kick on a foul inside the box by Maddox Brown, but Sjöberg read the attempt perfectly and dove to his right to make the save on a low strike from Koji Poon. SFU continued to apply pressure, however, and broke through just over four minutes later on a corner kick opportunity as Daniel James Jackson had the initial attempt blocked before Poon recovered the loose ball inside the box and found the back of the net to give the Red Leafs a 1-0 advantage.
- UCCS responded well after falling behind, beginning to generate sustained pressure in the attacking third as the half progressed. The Mountain Lions recorded five shots between the 26th and 36th minutes, including attempts on goal from Cole Wearner, Macias, and Jack Cook, while also earning a dangerous free kick just outside the penalty area in the 33rd minute that resulted in a shot from Macias being saved by SFU goalkeeper Harrison Gough.
- The persistence finally paid off for the Mountain Lions in the 42nd minute when an attempted clearance by the SFU defense fell to defender Gustavo Diaz Avila, who played the ball back to Macias near the top of the attacking third. Macias drove toward goal through a crowd of Red Leaf defenders, battling through multiple deflections before regaining possession and slipping a low strike into the right side of the net to level the match at 1-1. Both sides continued searching for the go-ahead goal in the closing minutes, but neither could break through as the teams entered halftime deadlocked at one goal.
- The action picked up immediately out of the halftime break as the two goalkeepers traded impressive diving saves in a span of less than a minute. Cook nearly gave the Mountain Lions their first lead of the afternoon in the 49th minute with a low strike that forced Gough into a diving stop before the Red Leafs quickly countered on the other end, where Sjöberg answered with an equally impressive save on a low attempt from Poon.
- UCCS continued to search for the go-ahead tally and created another dangerous opportunity in the 65th minute when Macias put a low shot toward the left side of the net, but Gough once again came up with a strong save to keep the match level. Less than a minute later, the Red Leafs nearly went back in front as a free kick was sent into the penalty area and Sjöberg came off his line to defend it. Simon Fraser managed to maintain possession of the ball with Nicholas Mackinnon eventually firing a shot attempt that clanked off the left post, keeping the score deadlocked at 1-1.
- The Mountain Lions continued to put pressure on the Simon Fraser defense as the second half wore on, with Sean Belzer putting a pair of shots on frame in the 72nd and 78th minutes. Gough was up to the task as he recorded saves on both occasions, while Sjöberg made another save of his own against Edward Ferrier in the 76th minute as neither side was able to find the decisive second goal.
- UCCS mounted one final push in the closing minutes, with Cole Wearner forcing another save from Gough in the 83rd minute before narrowly missing to the right in the 88th. Macias followed with one final opportunity in the 89th minute, but Gough made his sixth save of the second half to preserve the 1-1 draw.
STATS FROM THE GAME
- The Mountain Lions held an 18-15 advantage in total shots while putting ten attempts on frame compared to just five for the Red Leafs. Both sides generated eight corner kicks across the 90 minutes of action.
- Macias was at the center of the UCCS attack throughout the afternoon, recording game-high marks with six total shots and four shots on goal while netting his first goal of the season in the 42nd minute.
- Wearner added three shots with two on frame, while Cook and Belzer each put both of their two shot attempts on goal.
- Sjöberg logged a complete 90-minute performance and turned aside four of the five shots he faced on goal, including a penalty kick in the 18th minute.
- Gough had a strong afternoon in frame for Simon Fraser as he recorded nine saves on UCCS' ten attempts on frame.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Through the first six games of the season, the Mountain Lions have recorded at least 18 total shots in five contests and are averaging 20.17 shots per game.
- Sjöberg notched the first penalty kick save of his career at UCCS in the 18th minute and has now collected 23 saves on the season with a 0.852 save percentage and 0.67 GAA.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will close their non-conference schedule next week as they return to the Centennial State for a 6 p.m. kickoff at home against Metropolitan State University Denver on Thursday, Sept. 17 before heading north to Denver, Colo., for a matchup against Regis University on Sunday, Sept. 20 at 2:30 p.m.
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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.
