Mines (7-3-2, 4-0-0) at South Dakota Mines (1-9-2, 0-4-0) – Friday, 2 p.m. – Rapid City, S.D. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
Mines (7-3-2, 4-0-0) at Regis (4-7-1, 1-2-1) – Sunday, 12 p.m. – Denver, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

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AND THEN THERE WERE SIX
Just six regular season matches remain for the Colorado School of Mines men's soccer team before the RMAC Tournament begins, as those final contests will be split between the friendly confines of Stermole Stadium and road. Two of those three road matches will come this weekend, with the league-leading Orediggers heading to Rapid City Friday to play South Dakota Mines before heading back to Denver Sunday to take on Regis.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Both matches this weekend will be streamed free of charge on the RMAC Network and will have live stats through SIDEARM.
 
WEEK SIX RECAP
Mines took over sole possession of first place the RMAC standings over the weekend with a pair shutout wins over Colorado Christian and MSU Denver last week. Azad Iliozer scored twice against CCU to lead the way as Mines cruised to a 4-0 win before Tristan Semelsberger scored for the fourth-straight game in a 1-0 win over the Roadrunners.
 
SCOUTING SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
The Hardrockers have been on the wrong end of the score in eight of the last nine matches, having dropped four in a row including a 2-1 decision to then #15 CSU Pueblo last Friday before a 4-1 setback against #RV UCCS Sunday. South Dakota Mines earned a 1-1 draw back on September 18 against Adams State during the aforementioned stretch, as their only win of the season came on September 1, a 4-1 win over Dakota Wesleyan. As a team, the Hardrockers have been outscored 35-12 in 12 matches this season but have seen eight different players account for their own scoring output. Brady Cork's three goals leads the team, while Bernardo Almeida and Ransom Hall each have a pair, as five others all have one tally apiece. One of those five, Hayden Jaramillo is tops on the team with five assists, tied for second in the RMAC this season. In goal, Daniel Freitas has started all 11 games he has appeared for 972 minutes, logging 60 saves to lead the RMAC, and recording a GAA of 2.69. Kole Villescas has started once between the pipes in two games and has three saves and a GAA of 4.98.
 
SCOUTING REGIS
Regis hosts Colorado Christian Thursday night before taking on the Orediggers Sunday afternoon. Like South Dakota Mines, they too fell to UCCS and CSU Pueblo last weekend by score of 3-1 and 2-0 respectively. Prior to that, the Rangers notched a 7-0 win over the Hardrockers on September 23. Rayhan Carlson-Du Toit has scored seven times to lead the team and ranks among the RMAC leaders in that department. Kristian Hooker has scored four times on the season with Brendan O'Toole adding a pair of his own, while five others have one goal each. One of those five, Elias Taubo, leads the Rangers with three dimes this season, with Carlson-Du Toit and Kevin Cela checking in with two each, as the remaining balance of Regis' 14 assists are spread among seven players. Luca Falagrady has started all 10 matches he's appeared in as goalie for the Rangers, logging 37 saves in 900 minutes and recording a 2.10 GAA, while Greg L'Hommedieu, who started last time out against the Thunderwolves, has appeared twice for 180 minutes and has eight saves and a GAA of 1.00.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Friday will be the ninth meeting of Orediggers and Hardrockers, with Mines taking all eight of the previous meetings and scoring an average of 3.75 goals per game. Last season in Golden, Mines rolled to a 6-0 over South Dakota Mines. When it comes to Regis, the series history is much more expansive, wit the teams meeting Sunday for the 90th time and the Orediggers leading 44-35-10 all-time. Mines has won seven of the previous 11 matches, including a 3-2 win in double overtime in the second of two meetings between the teams in 2021, avenging at 2-1 loss in early September.
 
THE SKIPPER
Head Coach Greg Mulholland joined the program in 2007 as an assistant coach before taking over as interim head coach in 2017 and full head coach in 2018, making the 2022 season his 16th with the Orediggers. Through five years at the helm, Mulholland 78-17-11 overall with a mark of 54-2-6 in RMAC play. His overall winning percentage through the 2021 season ranks #1 among all active coaches in NCAA Division II with a minimum of five years as a DII head coach. Last season, Mulholland became the first men's soccer coach in the history of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference to win five straight RMAC regular-season championships. He is a three-time RMAC Coach of the Year and headed the 2019 and 2020-21 United Soccer Coaches South Central Region Staffs of the Year.
 
THEY ARE THE CAPTAINS NOW
One day prior to the season opener, Coach Mulholland announced that the 2022 team captains are Lucas King and Grant Bell. King is entering his sixth season with the program and fifth as a starter between outside back and the midfield. He led the team in assists in 2021 on his way to Second-Team All-America status. Bell, an outside back, is a true sophomore who started 13 of 20 matches in 2021 and appeared in 18 while scoring one goal with two assists and serving on a back line that helped post eight shutouts thanks to a combined 0.87 goals-against average.
 
CHECKING THE STAT SHEET
12 matches are in the books in 2022, as Mines has seen 10 different players find the back of the net this season, led by Tristan Semelsberger with eight, a mark that ranks third in the RMAC as do his 17 points. Azad Iliozer is next on the list with four goals and also has three assists for 11 points, while Gabriel Rodriguez, Chris Seery and Michael Sprauer have all scored three times. Lucas King leads the way with four assists and is one of four players with one goal to their credit this season. In goal, Brian Doherty has been the main man, starting 11 times and logging 21 saves in 932 minutes while posting a GAA of 1.16. Kenneth Symmes has appeared in three matches with one start, making five saves and posting a GAA of 0.61.
 
CLIMBING THE RANKS
Two different Orediggers are currently making moves in the program record book. Lucas has passed Alex Nass for fourth on the all-time assists list and is now tied with Jared Peacock at #3 with 32, and is one away from Tesho Akindele at #2. King now needs nine more assists to break Niki Grotz' (2014-17) all-time record of 41. Also making moves is goalkeeper Brian Doherty. His shutout against San Francisco State gave him sole possession of #5 on the Orediggers' all-time shutouts list. Doherty's 12 clean sheets during his time at Mines put him ahead of OJ Bullard (2000-03) and sit three back of Kevin Galloway (2003-06) at #4.
 
NEW RULES
NCAA soccer has implemented a major rule change this season with the elimination of overtime in the regular season, bringing college soccer more in line with the FIFA Laws of the Game. Any match that is tied at the 90-minute mark will now end that way. In the postseason, there will be overtime but no more golden goal; teams will play two full 10-minute extra periods regardless of any goals and if it is still tied, the advancing team will be decided on penalty kicks.
 
IN THE POLLS
Mines was picked #2 in the RMAC preseason coaches' poll announced earlier this month while making an appearance at #20 in the first United Soccer Coaches Division II Top 25 of the season. The Orediggers were edged on the conference list by Colorado Mesa which earned eight first-place votes and 97 points while Mines totaled three first-place votes and 92 points. On the national list, CSU Pueblo checks in this week at #7 with UCCS receiving votes, while early-season opponents Cal Poly Pomona and Western Washington check in at #10 and #20 respectively.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Following this weekend's road matches, Mines will be at home for three of four to close the regular season, beginning Thursday October 13 at 5 p.m. in a rematch with CSUP, before taking on UCCS Sunday October 16 at 2:30 p.m.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's soccer on Twitter at @MinesMSOC. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.