Oct. 15, 2006

Final Stats

Sacramento, Calif. - The University of Denver men's soccer team claimed victory in both Californian contests this weekend, beating MPSF rival Sacramento State 2-1 this Sunday in Sacramento, Calif. Juniors Josh Fallin (Midland, Texas) and Greg Fiddick (Sidney, B.C.) scored goals today as the Pioneers improve to 9-3-1 (5-0-0 MPSF) as the Hornets fall to 5-9-0 (2-3-0 MPSF). The five-game winning streak is the Pioneers' longest since 2000.

"We did what we had to do on the road to win this weekend, so we are pretty happy about that," Head Coach Chad Ashton said.

The Pioneers battled for the first half of the game, outshooting the Hornets 6-4. Scoreless for the first 35 minutes, the game's first goal was headed in by Fallin in the 36th minute. Colin Jones (Philadelphia, Pa.) redirected a free kick from freshman Collin Audley (Fort Collins, Colo.) into perfect position for Fallin to finish it off.

"The guys did a great job executing that scoring opportunity," Ashton said. "I was happy with the way we capitalized on the chances we did create, but I thought we could have created more."

The Pioneers kept the Hornets from scoring throughout the rest of the first half and went into halftime on top, 1-0.

The battle continued in the second half with Sacramento State outshooting Denver 7-1. DU once again executed on their scoring chance however, as Fiddick headed in a long throw-in from Jones to make the score 2-0.

The DU defense worked even harder in the second half to keep six of Sacramento State's seven shots from meeting the back of the net. One shot did find its way into the goal when Sacramento State's Zlatan Zuckovic tapped in a 30-yard free kick from Eli Millan in the 84th minute. The Pioneer defense held them off for the last six minutes of the game and the Pioneers won 2-1.

"I was very impressed with the organized defensive effort from the back four today," Ashton said. "They gave away very few chances, which gives us a better chance of winning on the road."

The back four consisted of Jones, Fallin, Mike Seager (Victoria, B.C.) and Luke Jackson (Aurora, Colo.) as the Pioneers were without captain Joey Mathot (Port Moody, B.C.) due to card cautions in previous matches.

"We missed having Mathot, but Jackson did a great job of filling in for him," Ashton said.

Freshman goalkeeper Joe Willis (St. Louis, Mo.) earned the win, making five saves during the match for his third win of the season.

"Willis was very steady in the net today, and kept organizing and talking to the team throughout the game so things ran smoothly," Ashton said.

The Pioneers will rematch both Californian teams with home advantage next weekend as they host MPSF rivals San Jose State on Friday, Oct. 20 at 1 p.m. and Sacramento State on Sunday, Oct. 22 at 11 a.m. at Pioneer Field.