2019 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship at Cal State LA
#14 Mines (15-3-4) vs. #13 Cal State San Bernardino (13-3-3) – Thursday, 3 p.m. PT – Los Angeles – [Live Stats] [Live Video]
 
Winner vs./at #3 Cal State LA (17-0-2) OR #11 St. Mary's (15-3-2) – Saturday, 6 p.m. PT – Los Angeles – [Live Stats] [Live Video]
 

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THE NEXT THREE DAYS
The #14-ranked Colorado School of Mines Men's Soccer team continues its run in the 2019 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament this Thursday as it faces #13-ranked Cal State San Bernardino in Los Angeles on the campus of Cal State LA. The winner of the third-round matchup, also known as the Sweet 16, punches its ticket to the Elite Eight to face the victory between #3-ranked Cal State LA and #11-ranked St. Mary's. It marks the Orediggers' fifth appearance in the Sweet 16 in program history and the stakes are single elimination. Survive and advance is the name of the game in December soccer.
 
WEATHER REPORT
Thursday's forecast for the campus of Cal State LA presents mostly cloudy skies and a game-time temperature in the low 60's. While humidity will be high, around 65 percent, the chance of precipitation is very low – under 5 percent. Since kickoff is at 3 p.m. (PT), fans should be safe with a long sleeve shirt as the top layer. Saturday projects rain showers all day and a high of 62 degrees. An evening kickoff at 6 p.m. could drop temperatures even lower so a rain jacket with warm lowers available would be appropriate.
 
FIRST TWO ROUNDS
Mines made its presence felt in the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament on Nov. 21 and Nov. 23. The eighth-seeded Orediggers started by defeating ninth-seeded and #20-ranked Texas A&M-International by a score of 2-1. Ryan Wilson scored the go-ahead goal off an assist from Lucas King. Adam Kindorf notched the game-winning goal thanks to the assist from Ian Kugler. In goal, Drew Johnson made four saves on the way to the win. Then, on Saturday, Mines upset the #1-ranked and only 18-win team in the nation, taking down the host Azusa Pacific, 2-1. Baptiste Debuire notched an early goal to take the lead. Jason Zobott scored the game-winning goal midway through the first half. Lucas King and Ford Edwards collected the assists. Azusa Pacific out-shot the Orediggers 22-6, but Johnson racked up six saves on the way to another victory.
 
SCOUTING CAL STATE SAN BERNARDINO
California State University at San Bernardino rolls into the Sweet 16 with an overall record of 13-3-3. The Coyotes started their season unbeaten through the first four games and posted an 8-1-2 mark through the first 11. CSUSB eventually lost to Cal State LA in the CCAA Tournament by a score of 2-0. Cal State San Bernardino's path to 13 wins and three draws features 12 shutouts, just one less than the Orediggers. Individually, Jonathan Garcia is the man to watch with five goals and seven assists for 17 points. Jacob Huber starts in goal and touts 61 saves compared to 11 goals against for a goals-against average of 0.58. As a team, CSUSB averages exactly 2.00 goals per game and limits its opponents to 0.63 goals and 11.1 shots per game. The Coyotes rank #3 in the nation in shutout percentage and #4 in goals-against average and save percentage. Cal State San Bernardino earned its berth in the Sweet 16 thanks to a 1-0 win against Cal Poly Pomona in the second round of the NCAA Tournament after earning a bye in the first round.
 
COYOTE FACTS
The nickname for Cal State San Bernardino's athletic teams is the Coyotes. Known in Latin as Canis latrans, the coyote is a dog native to North America. It is smaller than the gray wolf, eastern wolf and red wolfe, but larger than the golden jackal of Eurasia. Coyotes normally hunt alone or in pairs which make the nickname ironic in a team-sport situation. While dogs run with their tails up, coyotes actually run with their tails down. Near the top of the food chain, coyotes have very few natural predators and can live up to 20 years in captivity. Not only are coyotes very vocal, they also swim well and will eat just about anything. While Wile E Coyote is a fictional character from Looney Toons, his speed is not misguided. In real life, Coyotes can run up to 40 miles per hour. There are more fun facts, but that's really all we have to say about that.
 
SCOUTING ST. MARY'S
St. Mary's is the lone familiar face among the field of 16. The Rattlers and Orediggers faced off in the second game of the regular season and St. Mary's won on its home field, 3-1. Since that point, StMU reached a mark of 15-3-2 and won the Lone Star Conference's regular-season title. The Rattlers boast seven shutouts and goals at a clip of 2.45 per game. Individually, Ollie Wright was voted the D2CCA South Central Region Player of the Year thanks to eight goals and 12 assists for 28 points. Additionally, Edu Toiny-Pendred and Nenad Markovic tout nine goals apiece. In net, Jacob Sayle holds most of the starts and has 39 saves compared to 16 goals against. That comes out to a 0.99 goals-against average and a 11-2-2 record. Nationally, St. Mary's ranks #8 in fouls per game and #11 in three different categories including total goals and total points. The Rattlers advanced to the Sweet 16 thanks to a 5-0 victory over Western Washington in the second round after earning a first-round bye.
 
STRANGE LOOKING SNAKE
St. Mary's uses the nickname Rattlers in reference to rattlesnakes and its mascot is Rattler Man. Both Rattler Man and the athletics logo feature a somewhat fierce rattler head with fangs, but colored completely blue. While the author of this understands matching school colors and branding, he's just not sure if blue rattlesnakes actually exist. However, they are common and native all across all of Texas, so that seems acceptable enough. St. Mary's athletics website provides some history on the nickname and mascot which goes back to the 1920's. The mascot Rattler Man was not actually created until the 1990's thanks to a student's sketch which was described as a "saintly superhero." In the 1960's, St. Mary's student Don Ganter actually brought live snakes to events on campus. For the Mines crowd more grounded in science and facts, rattlesnakes are a group of venomous snakes of the genera Crotalus and Sisturus (not fully sure what either of those mean, but thanks Wikipedia). Classified as predators and carnivores, rattlers can range up to eight feet in length and actually have thermal receptors used for detection of warm-blooded creatures. So that's pretty cool. One last fun fact is that rattlesnakes also locate prey using their tongue which collects scent molecules from the air. The end.
 
SCOUTING CAL STATE LA
Thanks to Mines' victory over Azusa Pacific and a loss to Lynn University, Cal State LA is the lone undefeated team in all of NCAA Division II. At 17-0-2, the Golden Eagles haven't lost since Nov. 10, 2018 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Along the way, CSLA has defeated the likes of Chico State, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State San Bernardino and UC San Diego. In their first match of the 2019 NCAA Tournament, the Golden Eagles dismantled 10th-seeded Midwestern State by a score of 3-0. Cal State LA averages 2.32 goals per game and limits the opposition to 0.37 goals and 7.9 shots per game. David Elizaga leads all players with seven goals and six assists for 20 points. However, five other individuals have double-digit points on the season as well. Alexander Brems holds it down in goal behind 41 saves and only seven goals against. That comes out to a 0.36 goals-against average and at least a role in 13 shutouts.
 
WHAT'S A GOLDEN EAGLE
Cal State LA's Golden Eagle nickname for its athletics teams actually proves quite appropriate. While the name may sound mythical, golden eagles are actually quite real. They are one of the best-known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Their overall color is dark brown with lighter golden-brown plumage on their napes. A golden eagle's home range or territory can grow up to 77 square miles. Their length ranges from two to three feet and the wingspan can reach well over seven feet. Females are larger than males. The golden eagle is North America's largest bird of prey and can live up to 30 years. Despite its powerful reputation and acumen as a hunter, the Golden Eagle is a protected species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can fine you up to $10,000 for even having a golden eagle feather. Moral of the story? Don't pick up a golden eagle feather. And that is all.
 
JESSE OWENS TRACK
Both the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight in Super Region 4 will be played at Jesse Owens Track which is the home of Cal State LA soccer and track & field. The facility features permanent bleacher seating for about 5,000 fans and also hosts the university's commencement ceremony each June. There are lights and a press box and the surface appears to be natural grass according to pictures on the Cal State LA website. Notably, Jesse Owens Track was selected as one of the six sites to construct a world-class training track for the 1984 Summer Olympics held in Los Angeles. Ground was broken on Jan. 29, 1982 and completed over the next two years.
 
BRACKET BREAKDOWN [FULL BRACKET]
Even the most loyal NCAA Division II soccer fans may be confused by this year's new-look postseason. For the first time, men's soccer is playing its NCAA Tournament in a Super Region Format. Mines is part of Super Region 4, which received 10 bids to the big dance including five automatic qualifiers and five at-large berths. In the new format, the top four seeds host the first two rounds with seeds 1-6 receiving a first-round bye. That means the 3-6 and 4-5 matchups only play one game prior to the Sweet 16. After the first two rounds, the highest remaining seed hosts the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds. The seeding in 2019, in order from 1-10, featured Azusa Pacific, Cal State LA, St. Mary's (Texas), Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State San Bernardino, Western Washington, UC San Diego, Mines, Texas A&M-International and Midwestern State. The remaining teams out of Super Region 4 include Cal State LA, St. Mary's, Cal State San Bernardino and Mines. At this point, we've probably done all we can with words. The author recommends clicking the link above for a more visual understanding.
 
SERIES HISTORIES
According to records dating back to 1948, Mines has never faced Cal State San Bernardino or Cal State LA. That means Thursday's match marks the beginning of the new series and Saturday could mark a second new all-time series. However, as previously mentioned, the Orediggers are familiar with St. Mary's. Overall, Mines is 1-3-0 in the all-time series against the Rattlers including the loss earlier this season. In fact, the Orediggers have dropped three consecutive matches to St. Mary's. However, this weekend would mark the first time Mines faces the Rattlers in the NCAA Tournament. That being said, the Orediggers will need to move to 1-0-0 in the all-time series against CSUSB to make that a possibility.
 
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
As previously mentioned, Thursday marks Mines' fifth appearance in the Sweet 16 as part of its ninth overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The last time the Orediggers advanced to the third round was 2017, making Thursday its second appearance in the last three years. In total, Mines is 5-8-2 in the NCAA Postseason including one run to the Elite Eight in 2015. The Orediggers have won both of their shootouts, advancing 4-2 over Incarnate Word in 2005 and 6-5 last season over St. Edward's in Austin, Texas. In its last four appearances, Mines boasts a record of 4-3-1 with three overtime thrillers and 12 total goals. The Orediggers have posted one shutout of their own while being shut out six times in 15 total NCAA Tournament matches.
 
JASON ZOBOTT
On Wednesday morning, Oredigger senior Jason Zobott added to his impressive list of 2019 accolades. He was named the 2019 NCAA DII Men's Soccer CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). It is the top academic honor in all of NCAA DII Men's Soccer. Zobott also earned CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-America distinction. Zobott also earned CoSIDA Second-Team Academic All-America accolades in 2018 which makes him a two-time Academic All-American. A petroleum engineering major with a 3.92 GPA, Zobott also earned RMAC Player of the Year, RMAC Defensive Player of the Year, RMAC Academic Player of the Year, and First Team All-RMAC honors. It marks the second straight year Zobott was selected as the RMAC Defensive Player of the Year and first-team all-conference. Additionally in 2019, Zobott earned D2CCA First-Team All-Region distinction, RMAC All-Tournament team honors and RMAC Defensive Player of the Week four times. In 2018, Zobott was also a D2CCA second team All-American. Zobott has been effective on both ends of the field as part of a stifling defense that has recorded a school-record 13 shutouts and allowed just 15 goals. He ranks third on the team with 6 goals and 3 assists for 15 points.
 
PROVIDING CONTEXT
What exactly does CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year mean? Well, for starters, it requires selection to the CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-District team  while carrying a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.3 as a sophomore or above and be a starter or significant contributor to their team. That being said, here are the numbers. There are 6,864 men playing NCAA DII soccer on 215 teams in 2019. Only 93 of those players were eligible for CoSIDA Academic All-America honors. That's just 1.3 percent of the available population. Zobott, was voted #1 out of those 93 eligible individuals – placing him in the top .01 percent of all NCAA Division II Men's Soccer players.
 
MORE ACADEMICS
Zobott wasn't the only Oredigger honored for his academic performance on Wednesday. Redshirt senior Ben Overholt also earned CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-America honors. Overholt also boasts two CoSIDA First-Team Academic All-America awards after garnering the same distinction in 2018 as well. The honor adds to a growing list of accolades for the redshirt senior. In 2019 alone, Overholt has earned D2CCA First-Team All-Region, RMAC All-Tournament, First-Team All-RMAC, CoSIDA Academic All-District and RMAC First-Team All-Academic. That doesn't include his 2018 resume which features a pair of first-team all-region nods as well as First-Team All-RMAC. Overholt boasts a 3.86 GPA as an electrical engineering major and also leads the Orediggers in scoring thanks to seven goals and three assists for 17 points. Six of his goals were of the game-winning variety.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
It's been thoroughly covered but, in case you've reached this point and forgotten, a Mines victory puts the Orediggers into Saturday's match against the winner of Cal State LA and St. Mary's. If Mines loses, their season is over. Live stats and video of all matches will be available free at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics. Men's soccer is also on Twitter under the handle @MinesMSOC.