Men’s Soccer Falls to Colorado School of Mines

Steven Petrov
The Paw Print

After loosing to Metro State University last weekend with 0:1, Adams State Men’s Soccer team lost with 0:2 from the #1 RMAC conference team this season, Regis, on Friday October 18th. The game was played at the ASU Soccer field in Alamosa, at 3pm. With this loss “The Grizzlies” dropped 2 places in the current RMAC standings. Before the game, the team was tied for the 4th place in the conference with Colorado Mesa University. CMU won their home game against the 2nd leader in the RMAC, Colorado School of Mines on October 16th with 2:1, and with the loss of ASU on Friday; the CMU “Mavericks” are now 3 points in front of the “Grizzlies.”
The game, played in a sunny but chilly afternoon in Alamosa, will be remembered with a lot of physicality, strong tackles, good opportunities for both teams, and unfortunately with many really questionable calls by the referees. The “Rangers” started off the game well and had a goal scoring opportunity only 2 minutes into the game. The Regis midfielder, JB Dobbin, had a shot on goal, which was saved by the ASU’s goalkeeper, Jared Wilson. After the first 10 minutes of the match, the game evened up and, until the half time, both teams exchanged 4 shots in total (2:2). The low number of shots testifies for the good performance of both teams’ defenses as well as for the huge “fight” in the middle of the field. The junior defensive midfielder for the “Grizzlies” Matt Anderson as well as the senior “grizzly” midfielder Fabian-Omana stood out with their determination, perseverance and whole performance throughout the game. Even though the “rangers” had 4 corners during the first half, compared to 1 for ASU, they didn’t manage to capitalize their opportunities. Coach Tim Busen made his usual substitutions in the middle of the first half trying to keep his starters fresh for the second half. Unfortunately for the “Grizzlies” the freshman forward, Ethan Jackson, got injured in the beginning of the 1st half after a brutal slide tackle by Joseph terry, and was unable to continue the game.
After seeing that the game was not going in their favor, due to the strong performance delivered by the “Grizzlies,” the “Rangers” had to come out more focused and determined in the second half if they wanted to keep their almost perfect record (7-1-1). On the other hand ASU was ready to “fight” for at least another 45 minutes and looked ready to bring another major upset to a nationally ranked team. However, RU was the more calm and concentrated team throughout the 2nd half and had 7 shots, forcing ASU’s goalie to make 4 saves. After a long delay of the play due to a substitution in the “Rangers” team, and a corner kick from the left side of the “Grizzlies” 18-yard box, there was a rebound within the box, and Joseph Terry was the first one to get the ball, placing it in the net from 6 yards distance. The second goal was a header scored by the RU’s #9, Mark Kelly, in the 78th minute, after a cross by Jacob Martinez. The team led by Coach Busen put up a great fight up until the last second of the game, trying to score a goal and subsequently come back in the game. However the “Grizzlies” didn’t manage to equalize and the game ended as a win for the “Rangers.”