DENVER – The [9/4] University of Denver men's soccer program avenged one of its two regular season losses with a 2-1 win over Kansas City on Senior Night Wednesday at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium.

Following the match, Denver honored its 12 student-athletes senior class that included game-winning goal scorer and captain Ben Smith. Classmate Sam Bassett broke the school's career assists record on the Smith game-winner as well.

Scoring Summary
[9] Denver: Willoughby 25' (B. Smith), Ben Smith 53' (Bassett)
Kansas City: Taboada 70' (Kohoutek, Galluccio)

Notes:

• Bryce Willoughby netted his fifth goal of the season to open the scoring on Wednesday night.
• Willoughby's goal was the 10^th of his career.
• Willoughby has scored three goals in the last two games.
• Ben Smith earned his third assist of the season and the seventh of his career on the Willoughby opener.
• Smith's goal in the early stages of the second half was his first of the season and the fifth of his career.
• Sam Bassett earned the assist on Smith's goal, his 10^th assist of the season and the 23^rd of his career.
• Bassett's 24^th point of the season brings him into a tie with Matt Harrell (1999) and Oje Ofunrein (2023) for sixth on Denver's single-season list.
• Bassett's 10^th assist this season ties him with Zach Bolden for the second most in a single campaign.
• Bassett's 23^rd career assist broke the school record, moving the senior past Zach Bolden for DU's best mark in its DI era.
• Denver improved to 104-21-19 at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium since it opened in 2009, including 94-10-13 since Jack and Sheila Weinberg Head Men's Soccer Coach Jamie Franks joined the staff in 2012 and 69-8-10 since he took over as head coach.
• The Pioneers are 141-10-18 when scoring first since Franks arrival in 2012, including 9-0-1 this season.

First Half:

4' Bryce Willoughby got the first shot on target of the evening. Sam Bassett fed the Denver forward in the middle of the area, but Willoughby didn't get all of his attempt and it dribbled to the keeper.
12' KC earned its first corner of the night and the ball pinballed around Isaac Nehme's six-yard box, but ultimately went out for a goal kick.
25' Out of a recycled corner kick, Bassett found Ben Smith 30 yards out from goal. Smith took a couple touches before splitting a pair of Kansas City defenders and getting to the endline. Smith's cross was weighted perfectly to the run of Willoughby who slid inside the six to beat his defender to the ball and knock it into the open net.

Ben Smith splits a pair of KC defenders and finds Willoughby's run for his third goal in two games. #GoPios pic.twitter.com/RuPiOhdBIW

— Denver MSoccer (@DU_MSoccer) October 31, 2024

40' Julien Le Bourdoulous took a free kick from just outside of the box on the left side. The free kick was looking for the far top corner, but it rattled Nehme's far post and the Pioneers cleared the danger.
45' Denver earned a corner with 20 seconds to go and got the set piece off but the centerbacks attacking the corner weren't able to direct the header on target and the teams went into the intermission with the Pios up 1-0.

Second Half:
53' Out of an attacking throw-in Ben Smith scored on the first chance of the second half to double Denver's advantage. Bassett threw it in to Smith in the attacking half to setup the goal. After turning to let the ball run by him, Smith struck it first time from 22-yards out, off the underside of the crossbar and into the back of the net.  

Have a hit son!!!
Ben Smith doubles our advantage early in the second half. #SCTop10 | #GoPios | @NCAASoccer pic.twitter.com/rcAnl7merU

— Denver MSoccer (@DU_MSoccer) October 31, 2024

65' Bassett had a hit of his own from distance, curving an attempt to the far post, but the Kansas City keeper made a nice save diving to his left.
66' Willoughby nearly made it a fourth goal in two games a minute later, getting free down the Denver right, but his shot was blocked in-front and ultimately required a save that left a juicy rebound from the KC keeper. Bassett followed up on the rebound, but couldn't get his body around the shot and missed it wide of the near post.
69' Kansas City struck another post as Bravo Somolinos beat the diving Nehme but rattled the far woodwork.
70' Off the same sequence, Kansas City did pull one back when Hector Taboada lost his mark in the middle of the area and had a wide open header to make it a 2-1 game. Gabriele Galluccio and Ales Kohoutek earned the helpers in the build-up on the KC goal.
77' Oje Ofunrein got on the end of a Bassett free kick as the Pioneers pushed for a third, but he couldn't beat the near post and it went out for a goal kick.
90' Kansas City earned three corner kicks in the final minute of play. In the final 10 seconds of the match, Kansas City's keeper kept a corner kick alive and a KC player was ruled to have fouled a Pioneer in the box before a shot was taken that eventually went in after time expired.

UP NEXT:
The Pioneers will play their final two matches of the regular season on the road, starting with a trip to Oral Roberts on Saturday night at 6 p.m. MT. The match will be broadcast live on the Summit League Network. 

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