Denver 1-0 Army (Underwood 9')

MSOC v Army (31 AUG 15) - Highlights
MSOC v Army (31 AUG 15) - Full Game

DENVER -The University of Denver men's soccer team got an early goal and kept its shape through 90 minutes to earn its fifth clean sheet on the trot in a 1-0 win over Army on Monday night at CIBER Field at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium. With the win on Monday night, Denver extended its home winning streak to 19 matches and its home unbeaten streak to 21, both of which are the longest active streaks in the nation.

"I think it's the sign of a good team when you can grind out wins when you don't play well," head coach Jamie Franks said. "In college soccer, you have to be able to win 1-0. We got a good early goal, but didn't really play our best brand out there tonight. You have to give credit to Army for taking us out of what we wanted to do."

The Pioneers got a goal on their first shot of the match in the ninth minute as sophomore Alex Underwood (Winnetka, Ill.) slotted his first career goal just inside the far post. Redshirt-junior Chandler Crosswait (Bedford, Texas) distributed his second assist in as many matches, getting down the right side and feeding the run of Underwood inside the area. Denver outshot the Black Knights 3-1 in the opening frame.

In the second half, both teams got three shots off, testing the opposing keepers once apiece. Underwood again was on the end of Denver's best chance of the half, but his 15-yard attempt from the left was smothered by Army's Chris Britt.

Denver allowed just four shots in the match, and only one of those were on frame. The Pioneers took three shots in each half on Monday night.

"I think for us moving forward, we have to be happy with two shutouts. Our defending is the main thing that we've been emphasizing to this point in the season," Franks said. "At the same time, there are a lot of areas for improvement, and I don't think our guys are going to be satisfied when we look back at the tape of tonight's match. I trust in this group though. They'll be hungry, and looking to get better from today's performance."

UP NEXT: The Pioneers will head to New Mexico for the Grange and Ashwill Memorial Invitational next weekend in Albuquerque. Denver will take on No. 13 UC Santa Barbara on Friday at 4 p.m. MT, before battling No. 18 San Diego on Sunday at 12 p.m. MT.

TICKETS: Season tickets for the 2015 Denver men's and women's soccer seasons are on sale now, and can be purchased online, here.

ABOUT DENVER: DU is coming off its second-straight NCAA Tournament appearance, the first time the Pioneers have made consecutive postseason appearances in the program's history. DU finished the campaign 11-8-1 in 2014, posting a perfect 11-0 record at CIBER Field at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium. In the last two seasons, Denver is 15-1-1 in the Mile High City. Head coach Jamie Franks will enter his first season in charge in 2015, and his fourth season on the coaching staff at DU.

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