COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Back in the postseason thanks to their recent run of success the final three weeks of the regular season, the Colorado School of Mines men's soccer team began Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Championship action Saturday in the quarterfinals against the fourth-seeded and number three team nationally UCCS. The teams traded a pair of goal in the final 10 minutes of the first half and in the second half, the Orediggers (7-10-2) had to play down a man for the final 43 minutes of regulation and overtime, but in the end it was the Mountain Lions (14-1-4) who escaped with the 2-1 win in the 102nd minute.
 
Peter Saunders was put to the test for the first time in the fifth minute with a high right shot from Nick Walker that was knocked away on a leaping save by the sophomore from Severna Park, Maryland. After a series of corner kicks and a throw in by the Mountain Lions, Mines was able to successfully clear the ball out of their defensive end. Saunders logged another save in the 19th minute as UCCS found their way through a stingy Mines defense as a shot by Diego Macias was on frame but handled with ease. A flurry of looks moments later in the 22nd minute saw the Mountain Lions with several chances but nothing came of it as the defense dug in to see the sequence end with a goal kick.
 
Mines' first real look of the match came in the 28th minute on a free kick from Quin Collins following a foul against Smith Russell. Collins' free kick from the sideline to the back post looked good but had a little too much juice behind it as it sailed over the end line for a goal kick.
 
The first goal of the afternoon came in the 34th minute and saw Mines jump out to the early lead. Attempting to play the ball out of their own end, the Mountain Lions turned it over right in front of the Orediggers' bench as Luke Noameshie's pass was intercepted by Gabriel Rodriguez who immediately got a head of steam behind him and took off up field. Rodriguez raced to the end line before passing back to center for freshman Kian Mueller, whose first shot was deflected back into play off a defender as keeper Soren Russell hit the deck and was unable to recover in time for the second-chance offering as the Corvallis, Oregon native tucked it in the lower right corner to go ahead 1-0.
 
With less than 90 seconds in the opening half remaining, UCCS equalized on a free kick to the back post that was headed back across the face of goal where Nick Walker won the aerial battle to head it down and in past Saunders to reset the score at 1-1 heading to the intermission.
 
Opening the second half Mines had a look right away as John Burnett flagged down a corner kick from Collins on the near side of the field before playing it back to center where Charlie Newberry was able to get a head on the ball toward goal, but couldn't get it past the older of the two Russell brothers in the match.
 
A turning point in the match came in the 48th minute when a tangle between Jackson Million and Rodriguez resulted in Rodriguez being knocked to the ground by Million on the play, yet it was Rodriguez who was assessed a red card for expressing his displeasure with the sequence of events following a brief discussion by the officials. Thus, the Orediggers were left down a man for the balance of the match. The ensuing free kick from Collins as play resumed elicited a gasp from the crowd as it was on frame but snagged by Russell in goal.
 
Mines' second chance after the ejection saw Ayman Bushara look to extend his scoring streak to eight matches in the 53rd minute, but came up snake eyes. In the 64th minute the Orediggers threatened again, this time as younger brother Smith took aim against older brother Soren with the latter hanging on to make the save.
 
A 70th minute shot from UCCS by Walker off a Million free kick from the near side saw Saunders rebound to make a diving save inside the six-yard box amidst a scramble of gold and blue uniforms. The man-up advantage for the Mountain Lions started to take its toll against Mines as the half went on with a second chance moments later from Miles Seminario missing high over the crossbar.
 
Disaster nearly struck in the 74th minute as Mines tried to clear the ball out over the endline after breaking up an attack by the Mountain Lions, but instead it ended up sailing toward goal as Saunders had to lay his body on the line to avoid the own goal, poking it clear while colliding with the near post to put the ball back in play. Saunders was up to the task again in the 80th minute as he made a high leaping save under the crossbar on a shot from Jack Souder off a corner kick from the near side as the chances continued to stack for the home team with the man advantage.
 
In a match full of oddities, another took place in the 82nd minute as center official Brian Yip came up lame before the Orediggers looked to play the ball back downfield, clutching at the back of his left leg. That prompted an officiating change as Will Aten, the assistant referee on the near side slid over the take over center duties while Carson Frizell-Thomas, one of the assistants for the women's quarterfinal to follow, took over duties for the balance of the men's match.
 
While the pace was frenzied for the final eight minutes after play resumed, each side managed just one shot in the balance of regulations with Gael Hernandez and Mueller both missing wide right of goal as 90 minutes came and went with the score still level at 1-1.
 
Mines kicked off the first extra period but it was UCCS with the first shots from Cole Venable and Walker, who each missed the mark wide right into the snowbanks around the field. Soulo Letsoalo took aim in the 93rd minute as the Mountain Lions looked to press their personnel advantage but Saunders plucked it out of the air and quickly send it back the other way.
 
The younger of the Russell brothers in the matchup and one wearing blue fired a banger of a shot in the 96th minute looking for the game-winner, but Smith's volley sailed high over the crossbar as play continued. Saunders made another great save in the 99th minute on a shot from Venable following a free kick as another shot on the ensuing corner kick by Sowder missed high and left over goal as the clock expired on the first overtime period.
 
UCCS kicked off the second extra period and didn't waste long wrapping things up, as Sowder scored the game-winner on a head off an Eduardo Macias free kick in the 102nd minute to advance to the semifinals with a 2-1 result.
 
NOTABLES
-Mueller's goal was his first of the season and first of his collegiate career as he became the second freshman to score in 2024, joining Russell and becoming the 11th different Oredigger to find the back of the net this season
-Bushara and Mueller both finished the afternoon with three shots apiece as nine different players attempted a shot for Mines in the contest
-Saunders ended the afternoon with seven saves in goal
-Mines finished the match with 15 shots and eight on goal despite playing down a man for the final 54 minutes of the afternoon
-Newberry finishes the season as the team leader in minutes with 1,527 as he played all 102 minutes Sunday along with Caelin David, Noah Roles and Collins
-Bushara played a season-high 85 minutes ends the year as the team leader in scoring and points with nine goals and 21 points
-Burnett clocked a season-high 84 minutes in his final collegiate match
-Alex Gonzalez finishes the season with 1,112 minutes played after logging 79 Sunday and has now played at least 1,100 minutes in each of his first two seasons at Mines
-Bakar Berthe was on the field Sunday for a season-best 59 minutes Sunday
-The Orediggers' 2024 season conclude with a +2 win improvement both overall and in RMAC play from 2023
-Head coach Greg Mulholland's career record now stands at 96-35-20 (.702) through eight seasons at the helm
 
UP NEXT
The Orediggers offseason begins Monday as they'll reflect on the season that was and look ahead to 2025. Stay tuned to minesathletics.com for postseason awards and honors and to keep up with the latest new around the men's soccer program.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's soccer on X and Instagram at @minesmsoc and @mines_msoc. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.