GOLDEN, Colo. – After getting a long week off after claiming the regular season title, the #15 Colorado School of Mines men's soccer team was back on the pitch as Stermole Stadium Sunday on a clear and cool late fall Colorado afternoon for their semifinal match in the 2022 RMAC Men's Soccer Tournament against UCCS. In what ended up being one of the more physical matches of the season, the Orediggers (13-4-2) were able to net the go-ahead goal in the second half and completed an outstanding effort on defense, downing the Mountain Lions (11-5-4, 5-3-2) 1-0 to advance to the title match Friday night.
 
Mines put goalkeeper Declan Domyan to the test early, as Azad Iliozer uncorked the first shot of the day in the fourth minute and was followed by tries from Michael Sprauer, Tristan Semelsberger and Ian Kugler but none of them were able to get by Domyan as the opening flurry of action in the first eight minutes set the tone for what was to come.
 
Ben Ashfield looked to put UCCS on the board first when pulled up with a shot in the 17th minute, but Kenneth Symmes was there to snag to shot and keep things level for the moment. Sprauer tried again for the first goal of the afternoon in the 20th minute but his try was punched clear by Domyan.
 
Chris Seery's attempt just moments later was saved again by Domyan as the Mountain Lions quickly flipped into their offensive set, as Kolby Raineri put a shot on goal but again Symmes as able to make the save as both sides continued to search for the first goal of the day.
 
A very physical match continued over the final 20 minutes of the opening period as Mines and UCCS kept trying to get on the board first in a match that had the feel of whoever scored first might just advance. The shots continued to come for both sides as the period wore on, but none found their mark as the intermission came with the match still scoreless.
 
The Mountain Lions posted the first two shots of the second half as the hard-hitting action resumed, with Symmes again making the save on a shot from Lars Walczyk to keep UCCS off the board before the Orediggers finally broke the seal with what ended up being the only goal of the day in the 51st minute.
 
A well-executed corner kick by Lucas King into the box was first headed hard at Domyan by Semelsberger, but the rebound off the save caromed straight to the feet of Quin Collins, who lofted a shot from point-blank over a prone Domyan and into the net to make it 1-0 Orediggers.
 
Now up by one with less than 40 minutes to go, Mines continued to pressure the UCCS defense as they looked to find a second goal to provide some security in a match as close as this one. Two more tries from Semelsberger were near-misses to the far post before tries from Lucas King and Azad Iliozer were both turned saved as it remained a 1-0 contest.
 
Symmes made one of his best saves of the afternoon in the 73rd minute, diving to his right to get his fingertips on a shot by Marvin Putu from the top of the box as the Mountain Lions continued to search for a way to even the score.
 
UCCS nearly managed to do just that in the 78th minute, when a shot on a free kick from Alex Andersson looked to be true but connected flush with the right post of goal to bounce away as the time continued to tick down.
 
Another try at making it a two-goal affair from Semelsberger in the 80th minute wasn't to be as the Mines defense turned in one of their finest shifts of the season, holding UCCS to just one shot in the final 10 minutes of action to close out a 1-0 victory and advance to the RMAC Tournament title match on Friday night.
 
NOTABLES
-Collins becomes the 12th different Oredigger to score this season, scoring his first of 2022 and fifth of his career
-King adds to his team-leading total of seven assists on this season while Semelsberger recorded his second of the year
-Semelsberger led all players in the match with seven shots, three of which were on goal
-Symmes logged a season-high four saves in his second start of the season
-The Orediggers have now won their last 10 matches against UCCS
-Mines outshot UCCS 20-12 overall and 10-4 in SOG in the match
 
UP NEXT
By virtue of their win Sunday, Mines will play for the RMAC Tournament championship Friday November 4 at 6 p.m. against the second-seeded CSU Pueblo ThunderWolves, after they defeated Westminster by a score of 3-2.
 
Fans are reminded that there is no passlist for the postseason. All matches will be streamed on the RMAC Network. Tickets and additional tournament information can be found here.