University of Denver
4-7-2, 3-1-1
Saint Mary's
2-9-5, 0-4-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Saint Mary's (CA) | 2 | 0 | 2 |
10/21/2026 6:18:00 PM | Men's Soccer
A pair of Denver freshmen scored their first career goals on Wednesday evening in the Pioneers first road win of the season
MORAGA, Calif. – The University of Denver men's soccer program took a 3-2 lead after a wild first half and shored up its defense in the second half of the Pioneers one-goal win at Saint Mary's on Wednesday evening at Saint Mary's Stadium.
Notes:
- Junior outside back Will King opened the scoring in the first half with his second goal of the season and the fourth of his Pioneer career.
- King's assist on Denver's second goal was the first of his career and made Wednesday evening's game King's first career match with multiple goal contributions in the same game.
- King's goal was Denver's second this season in the opening five minutes of a match, and Denver's 33rd since rejoining the Division I stage in 1999.
- Freshman attacking player Ethan Orchard doubled Denver's advantage in the opening 10 minutes, his first career goal and his third goal contribution of the season.
- King's and Orchard's goals in the opening 10 minutes were 3:29 apart, the first time this season and the 81st time in the Pioneers modern DI era that the Pioneers have scored consecutive goals in a five-minute stretch.
- Freshman Tomi Giwa came on in the 33rd minute to make his collegiate debut on Wednesday and scored 11 seconds before the halftime whistle to give the Pioneers the lead back at 3-2 at the intermission.
- Chase Stewart had the primary assist on Giwa's goal, the first goal contribution of his career.
- Luke Schultz played the corner kick on Denver's game-winner, his second assist in as many matches and the seventh of his career.
- Denver's win was its second road result in WCC play, and its first road win of the entire 2026 campaign.
How it Happened:
3' Alex Hohl was called upon to make an early save as the Denver defense decreased the angle of Talan Rochelle and Hohl was positioned well to make the save.
5' Denver got on the board quickly when Will King had a Saint Mary's header fall to him at the top of the box, and he struck in hard and low on the volley to find the back of the net and open the scoring.
9' The Pioneers quickly found the important second goal to double their advantage. Luke Schultz played a free kick from the right channel to the back post run of Ryan Mackay. Mackay's header was deflected by a Saint Mary's defender and bounced straight up in the air to King. King pulled it back to the middle of the box and Ethan Orchard from just inside the penalty spot buried it into the bottom left corner to give Denver a two-goal advantage.
10' Saint Mary's looked to cut into the deficit when Kobey Cameron went for a volley of his own, but Hohl made the save and pushed it out of danger.
27' Hohl made back-to-back saves in quick succession, stopping a pair of shots by Luke Schaefer for saves three and four of the day.
32' Schaefer did get the home side on the board a few minutes later when he was kept on side by Denver's left back before finishing into the bottom corner.39'
Schaefer leveled the match for the Gales, curling his sixth shot of the game from just inside the box and beating Hohl to the far post.
45' The frantic final quarter hour continued in the final 15 seconds when on his debut Tomi Giwa earned the Pioneers their fourth corner of the opening 45 minutes. Schultz once again played the set piece, this time from the corner flag. Freshman Chase Stewart won the back post header but popped it straight up in the air. Stewart ran on to his own header and headed it a second time back across the six-yard box to the run of Giwa, who beat his defender to the ball and headed home his debut goal.
50' The first real chance for either team in the second half came off the head of Kobey from inside the box, and Hohl used quick reflexes to kick out his leg and deflect the header over his crossbar and in behind for a corner.
58' Hudson Tate had a chance to double Denver's advantage again just before the hour mark, but he didn't get all of it on the slick surface, and the Saint Mary's keeper was able to record his third save comfortably.
70' A brilliant counter outlet from Erik Collins to Orchard sparked Denver's next chance. Orchard took several touches before getting it on his left foot, and he didn't quite find the side netting, and Sam Bentley dove to his right and punched to keep it out.
82' Hohl's seventh save of the evening was comfortable from his good positioning, getting his body behind a Max Owusu-Antwi header to make the stop.
UP NEXT:
Denver is back in action on Saturday night when the Pioneers welcome Pacific to the Mile High City. Opening kickoff at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium is set for 3 p.m. MT, and the match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
TICKETS:
Tickets for the final two Denver home matches are on sale now and can be purchased here.
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Players Mentioned
Team Stats
Will King (2)
GOAL by DEN King, Will.
04:33
Ethan Orchard (1)
Assisted By: Will King
GOAL by DEN Orchard, Ethan Assist by King, Will.
08:02
Luke Schaefer (6)
Assisted By: Jaydon Whittaker , Talan Rochelle
GOAL by SMC Schaefer, Luke Assist by Whittaker, Jaydon and Rochelle, Talan.
31:37
Luke Schaefer (6)
Assisted By: Eemil Laamanen
GOAL by SMC Schaefer, Luke Assist by Laamanen, Eemil.
38:21
Tomi Giwa (1)
Assisted By: Luke Schultz , Chase Stewart
GOAL by DEN Giwa, Tomi Assist by Schultz, Luke and Stewart, Chase.
44:49
