SALT LAKE CITY – The Westminster College men's soccer team opened its 30th season of competition with a 1-0 win over 16th-ranked Jamestown (N.D.) on Tuesday afternoon at Dumke Field.

The two teams played a scoreless first half as neither team got into any kind of offensive flow. The Griffins (1-0) started to open things up on the offensive end early in the second half which led to Ryan Smith scoring from about 20 yards out in the 75th minute. Smith took advantage of a 1v1 situation to carry the ball to the middle of the field and then fire a shot inside the near post.

Westminster took nine shots in the second half and finished the contest with a 10-3 edge in shots. They managed six of their attempts on goal, including three in the final 15 minutes that were turned away by the Jamestown (0-1) keeper. Connor Thompson fired two shots with one goal in his collegiate debut while Wilson Larson and Bryan Rucklos had the other shot attempts.

The Griffin defense was solid all afternoon and held the Jimmies without a shot inside the box. All three attempts from Jamestown were put on goal only to be turned away by Logan Butzier of the Griffins. It was the first career appearance for Butzier and he earned his first career win and shutout.

Next up for the Griffins is a Saturday afternoon match with The Master's (Calif.) at Dumke Field. The Griffins will look to start 2-0 for a second straight year with a 2:30 p.m. kickoff.