GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The 2021 season came to a bitter end for the No. 6 seeded Regis University men's soccer team (10-8-1) on Sunday afternoon as they suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of the No. 2 seeded Colorado Mesa University in the semifinals of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Men's Soccer Tournament.
 
How It Happened: Entering the match, Regis was riding a three-game winning streak with their most recent victory coming against the No. 3 seeded Westminster College Griffins on Thursday evening. That matched propelled the Rangers into a semifinal matchup with Mavericks today. In the only matchup between the two this season, CMU came out on top 2-0. RU was hoping to avenge the regular season loss, but things did not pan out the way any Regis fans wanted.
 
11:31 into the opening half, the Mavericks drew first blood with a chip shot that sailed over senior goalkeeper Copper Erickson's head for the first goal of the game. About six minutes after that, the Mavericks would strike again. A cross was sent into the box and a CMU player was able to get their head on the ball and slot it into the upper half of the goal, extending the lead to 2-0 for the home team.
 
Things settled down a bit after the second goal as neither team was able to find the net for the rest of the half. Coming out of the halftime break, the Rangers needed to start putting together more dangerous attacks. In the 71^st minute, RU had a couple chances. Junior Vilhjalmur Kaldal took a shot that was narrowly saved by the Mavericks goalkeeper. Just a few minutes later, graduate student Parker Klein had an opportunity to score, but his attempt at a low-driven shot was saved, again, by the keeper. Those turned out to be the best two chances for Regis for the remainder of the contest.
 
After a foul from one of the Rangers defenders in the 85^th minute, CMU was awarded a free kick from just a few feet outside of the penalty box. The home team made the most of the free kick opportunity as they netted their third goal of the match, all but putting away RU for the match. That is how the score line would finish for the match, and Regis was eliminated from the tournament.
 
Game Notes: Statistically, it was not the Rangers' night. They put four of their 13 total shots on goal, with the home team putting nine of their 22 shots on frame. The Mavericks had seven corner kicks to only four for RU. Regis did come up with more saves in the match as Erickson finished with six saves in the game. Kaldal accounted for three of the team's four shots on net and the other one came from Klein.
 
Up Next for the Rangers: Unfortunately, it is a single-elimination tournament and with the loss, the 2021 campaign ends for the Regis University men's soccer team. The valuable experience of reaching the semifinal round of the RMAC Tournament will benefit all the returning players in the years to come. For all the players that will not be returning, they know that they have laid solid foundations for the men who are to follow. They have demonstrated and instilled a culture of winning, and the legacy of the Regis Men's Soccer Team will continue to grow from here.