COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Owen Gallo scored twice, and the Westminster men's soccer team beat UCCS 4-1 on Sunday afternoon at Mountain Lion Stadium to advance to the RMAC Tournament semifinals. The No. 5 seed Griffins scored on four of their eight shots and put six on target against the No. 4 seed Mountain Lions.
Game Breakdown
First Half
Westminster started quickly. Cam Neeley forced a save from UCCS goalkeeper Hugo Sjoberg at 0:36, and the Griffins earned a corner kick at 3:07. At 4:01, Parker Stebbing scored an unassisted goal, his fourth of the season, to put Westminster up 1-0. Jack Epstein had a shot blocked at 19:40.
UCCS applied pressure in the middle of the half, taking three shots and winning three corner kicks between 31:32 and 35:54. Oliver Olsen saved shots from Olly Reynolds at 31:32 and 34:26 to preserve the lead. Westminster went to halftime up 1-0.
Second Half
Gallo doubled the lead at 51:38, scoring his seventh goal of the season off a Stebbing assist to make it 2-0. UCCS answered at 58:42, when Yohann Fila scored off a Gustavo Diaz Avila assist to cut the deficit to 2-1.
Olsen kept the lead intact, saving Marcus Garcia's shot at 63:27. Westminster then restored its two-goal cushion at 69:14, when Gallo scored his eighth goal of the season off an assist from Kasen Smith to make it 3-1. Olsen made another save, on Dillon Clarke at 77:31.
Gage Wood put the match away at 84:28, scoring his seventh goal of the season off a Neeley assist for the 4-1 final. Olsen closed out the win with a save on Garcia at 88:44.
Westminster was shown three cards: a yellow to head coach Josh Pittman at 31:15, and a yellow at 56:19 and a red for unsporting behavior at 74:09, both to Stellan Blomberg. UCCS received three yellow cards.
Griffin Performances
-
Owen Gallo scored two goals, taking his season total to eight, and put both of his shots on target in 90 minutes
-
Parker Stebbing scored a goal and recorded an assist, putting his only shot on target, in 90 minutes
-
Gage Wood scored a goal and put both of his shots on target in 44 minutes off the bench
-
Cam Neeley recorded an assist and put his only shot on target in 72 minutes
-
Kasen Smith recorded an assist in 20 minutes off the bench
-
Oliver Olsen earned the win in goal, making five saves in 90 minutes
Final Stats
-
Shots: UCCS 12, Westminster 8
-
Shots on Goal: Westminster 6, UCCS 6
-
Corner Kicks: UCCS 8, Westminster 2
-
Fouls: Westminster 14, UCCS 11
-
Saves: Westminster 5 (Olsen), UCCS 2 (Sjoberg)
-
Offsides: Westminster 2, UCCS 0
Up Next
Westminster faces No. 1 seed Regis in the RMAC Tournament semifinals on Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m. in Denver. It will be the third meeting between the teams this season, after Regis won 3-0 on Sept. 17 and 3-1 on Oct. 18. The winner advances to the championship match on Saturday or Sunday, Nov. 7-8.
