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Metro remains king of conference
By Zac Taylor
ztaylor2@mscd.edu

Metro men’s soccer team fought to a draw with the No. 2 team in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the Colorado School of Mines Sept. 21, and then topped Colorado Christian 4-1 two days later.

The first RMAC matchup took place in Golden and it featured the heavyweights of the conference with top-ranked Metro and second place Mines.

“This (game) is always a battle,” Metro head coach Ken Parsons said of the matchup.

The players didn’t disappoint as they came out shooting and the ball rarely stayed in the middle of the field.

“We did a good job creating chances,” Parsons added about the pressure Metro put on the Oredigger’s defense.

Yet the ’Runners failed to capitalize on their early chances, leading to Mines’ fi rst goal at 22:40 after a shot from 20 yards ricocheted off the top post and fl ew down past the goal line.

The defensive lapse appeared to fi re up the Metro squad and soon after Metro forward Philip Owen took a chance, powering the ball between a defender’s legs toward the net before being stopped by a diving keeper.

The defense became more involved as Metro goalkeeper Ryan Vickery put his goalkeeping abilities to the test by saving five shots throughout the game, allowing no goals the rest of the way.

It wasn’t until the second half that the Roadrunners entered the scoring, coming from a shot by Andrew Donnelly with 21:30 left. Metro kept pressing and testing the tough Mines’ defense but neither team managed to turn their shots into winning goals and at the end of regulation, the score remained 1-1.

“We tried to make the least amount of mistakes out there to avoid another goal,” Parsons said.

The two teams started the fi rst overtime as a chill settled on the dim fi eld, but neither team seemed to freeze up. In between intermittent chants of “let’s go Metro” and “we are the Miners” throughout the seats, Mines went on the attack. The ’Runners defense however was up to the challenge and last week’s All-RMAC player Garrett Sadusky set the defensive tone with a slide tackle, which saved a possible winning shot. Metro midfi elder Ola Sandquist helped Vickery as well, using his height to block a close corner kick.

Then the Metro offense began pushing for a goal, led by midfi elder Mark Cromie, as he launched a free kick directly at the net that was saved by Oredigger’s goalkeeper Kevan Thurman, who would fi nish with nine saves.

Despite a shot and corner kick advantage throughout the game, the Roadrunners failed to break the tie, and at the end of two overtime periods, the top two teams in the RMAC had to be content with a draw.

“A tie on the road is not a terrible result, it keeps us undefeated in the conference,” Parsons said after the game.

Two days later, the ’Runners once again put their undefeated conference record on the line, this time against Colorado Christian (0-8).

Metro wasn’t ready to settle for another tie as Wynne Mason’s goal in the fi fth minute proved that. The Cougars responded with a goal in the 15th minute, but soon after Philip Owen converted a penalty kick for his fi rst of two goals in the game. The ’Runners took the lead for good, eventually leading to a 4-1 win. Metro’s offense was relentless throughout, outshooting Colorado Christian 36-8.

The win was Metro’s fifth in the conference, improving their record to 7-1-2 overall and remain undefeated and No.1 in the RMAC.