POMONA, Calif. – The Colorado School of Mines women's soccer team's historic 20th anniversary season came to a close Saturday in the quarterfinals of the 2024 NCAA Division II Women's Soccer Championship at the hands of #4 Cal Poly Pomona 2-0. The Orediggers (20-1-2) outshot the Broncos (20-1-2) in the match by a margin of six for the afternoon, but the home team made the most of their limited chances as they advanced to the semifinals.
 
Mines took the first two shots of the day as Afton Rasco had the opening look as she looked to run her scoring streak to three matches in the 10th minute but missed her mark high. Allie Lundgren was tested for the first time in 16th minute by Marisa Salazar but handled the shot without issue for the save.
 
Both teams continued to jockey for advantage as the opening half went on as chances were hard-earned when they came. After Vanessa Cruz banged a shot off the crossbar in the 29th minute, CPP took the lead in the 31st minute as Liberty Ortiz scored on a back post header off a corner kick from Tara Oper to take the lead.
 
Mines looked to answer as play resumed late in the opening half. Laura Butler's 32nd minute strike against Bella Hara was denied before Reese McDermott rattled the crossbar with a near-miss in the 39th minute before being turned away by Hara on a penalty kick attempt in the 44th minute as the Broncos took a 1-0 lead to the break.
 
Oper looked to score a goal of her own for CPP to open the half on a pair of chances early in the half, but Lundgren rebounded to make the save on both shots to keep it a one-goal deficit for the time. Bella Campos had a look of her own in between in the 54th minute, but likewise was turned away by Hara.
 
In the 63rd minute Salazar found the net to double the lead for the Broncos. Pulling up for a long-range shot well above the penalty area, the shot was set up by a pass from Oper as the Orediggers now trailed 2-0 with less than 30 minutes to play.
 
With their season on the line, Mines threw everything they had at the Broncos' defense. Campos McDermott and Ellise Putnam all took aim down the stretch in an attempt to get on the board and generate some momentum, but a comeback was not meant to be as the horn sounded on a 2-0 result, marking the end of a stellar season.
 
NOTABLES
-Reese McDermott closes out her career as one of the greatest players in program history, starting all but five of the 85 matches she played in for more than 5,200 minutes and scoring 53 goals with 19 assists for 125 points with 18 game-winners, all of which rank in the top five in Mines history
-Ava Harman ends her career having started 90 of 95 matches in her five seasons, scoring seven goals with 11 assists in more than 7,600 minutes with five game-winners
-Lauren Clingman cleared 6,100 minutes in her 87th and final career match and ends her tenure in Golden with four goals and four assists for 12 points
-Ellise Putnam ends her career following 82 matches and more than 3,300 minutes played with 10 goals and 16 assists for 36 points
-Cloey Seltzer, who was inactive Saturday, ends her career with 11 goals and 11 assists in 73 matches and more than 2,800 minutes played
-Katie Koehler, who missed the final half of the season with injury, finishes her career just shy of 7,000 minutes in five season with nine goals and two assists for 20 points with 80 starts in 83 matches
-Paola Rubi ends her time at Mines with over 3,400 minutes played and seven goals with three assists for 17 points in 75 matches
-Laura Butler calls it a career following 89 matches with 14 goals and 10 assists for 38 points in over 4,500 minutes of action
-Emily O'Connor ends her time in Golden with one assist across 12 matches as a reserve
-Bella Campos ends her second season at Mines with 14 goals and seven assists, giving her 30 and 11 in just 44 matches as she continues to climb up the program record books
-Head coach Kevin Fickes' record in 15 seasons at the helm of the Orediggers now stands at 244-42-40 (.810)
-The Orediggers finish the season ranked #1 in the country for six consecutive weeks.
 
UP NEXT
The Orediggers now head into the offseason and prepare for 2025. Stay tuned to minesathletics.com for news, awards and more related to women's soccer at Mines.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines women's soccer on Twitter and Instagram at @mineswsoc. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.