USC crashes Roadrunersâ homecoming

Menâs soccer loses &th-straight in home-opener on $1.5 million field

By Michael BeDam
The Metropolitan

The seven-figure Auraria Fields renovation project did little to soften the thud of a crash reaching Wall Street proportions. And to the men involved in the soccer market at Metro, any broker with a pulse would scream ãsellä as the Roadrunners appear to be headed for deep recession.

Metro dropped a 2-1 decision Oct. 10 in its home opener at Auraria Fields as the University of Southern Colorado brushed aside a 1-0 halftime deficit to spoil what could have been a new beginning.

Instead, the Roadrunners suffered their seventh straight loss and fell to an abysmal 2-7 record in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, 5-9 overall.

And though the new fields provide a plush

carpet of natural grass and a new direction ÷ north/south as opposed to the old field that ran east/west ÷ 13 road games to open the season have taken a toll on the Roadrunners.

ãWeâll keep playing everyday and will not quit,ä Metro coach Brian Crookham said. ãWe find amazing ways to lose, but we will not quit.ä

Metro held a ribbon-cutting ceremony before the game to present the new field to the Roadrunners and the gratuitous estimate of 123 fans.

It didnât take long for the Roadrunners to make themselves at home.

Todd Padgett christened the field with a header at 23:32 to give the Roadrunners an early lead, but the second half featured an attacking Thunderwolves offense that outshot Metro 9-5 and outscored it 2-0.

 Ryan Billiet scored unassisted at 57:00 for USC (5-7-1, 3-4-1) and Tony Decares scored on a pass from Jake Book to close the book on Metro at 65:41.

Padgett said itâs becoming routine to see games slip away.

ãWe are flat and complacent and seem to be happy with a lead,ä Padgett said. ãWe come out and let it all go.ä

In Metroâs defense, there have been some truly amazing finishes to games the Roadrunners had controlled right up to the point of losing.

Two times Metro has been victimized in the final minute of games ÷ once to force overtime and once to eliminate the need for overtime ÷ both of which ended in losses.

Needing to win all its remaining RMAC games to make the playoffs, Metro virtually eliminated itself from a shot at the RMAC tournament with the loss.

With three of its last four games at home, the best the Roadrunners can do is merely rediscover the confident play that allowed the team to crack the Top-25 Division II ranking polls at No. 23 earlier in the season.

ãWe are at a point that we are unsure that weâre going to win,ä Crookham said.

Metro gets another shot Oct. 19 when it visits USC and will finish off the season with three straight at home beginning Oct. 22 when it squares off with Colorado Christian.