LAS VEGAS - It started like a dream and was a battle for the full 90 minutes, but the California Baptist University men's soccer team recorded their fourth-straight WAC postseason victory, a 2-0 decision over Utah Tech, to reach its second Championship game in as many years.
The Lancers are now 4-0 in the Western Athletic Conference postseason, continuing the streak that started during last year's memorable run in Riverside.
"We started the game very well, obviously, and those two goals ended up being enough. I thought we defended well, but we can certainly pass the ball better. The most important thing at this stage of the season, though, is the result," remarked Head Coach Coe Micahelson after the game. "It's good to get that first one under our belt after the 10-day break. We know we have a battle on our hands Saturday, but it's a chance to win a conference title and punch our ticket to the National Tournament, so we will be ready to put everything we have into it."
This year, the Lancers earned a first-round bye, which also meant ten days between games, though no rust was evident in the beginning as CBU scored two goals in the first 20 minutes of action. That tempo paid off quickly as the Lancers earned three corner kicks in the first 12 minutes, with the third resulting in riches. Luis Mueller sent in the corner that found the head of fellow international senior Georg Bjarnason, who propelled the ball in for the score. He put such pace on the shot that even though the Utah Tech keeper got a glove on it, the ball still made its way into the top netting in the 13th minute.
The encore occurred four minutes later as a 3-on-3 breakaway was executed perfectly. It began with Freshman of the Year
Drew Hardin shifting the momentum after a UT turnover and finding a streaking
Leo Mendez down the sideline. He dribbled nearly to the end line before sending a perfect cross to Mueller, who froze the goalkeeper by shooting back to the far post for an uncontested insurance goal.
After the second goal, the Trailblazers began an all-out offensive, resulting in seven shots before the halftime horn, putting two on frame, but nothing
Nolan Premack couldn't easily handle.
The second half was a continuation of the end of the first as UT got another seven shots off before CBU managed their first of the second half in the 83rd minute. Regardless,
Thomas Beecham,
Antonio Gomez,
David Cordes, and the rest of the defense locked down and severely limited the Trailblazer's quality chances. The defensive backbone of the Lancers held firm as they've done for most of the season and collected the sixth shutout of the year.
Luis Mueller continues to separate himself in the program's rich history. His goal and assist tonight gave him 22 goals and 18 assists, adding up to 62 career points. He now resides firmly in second place in the Division I era for goals and assists and extends his record points margin to five now, and Bryan Iliohan remains in second there with 57 points. Nolan Premack's sixth clean sheet of the season gives him 13 for his career, giving him sole possession of second place all-time and half a dozen clear of the closest DI-era competition.
The result sets up an arguably unpredicted Championship match between the Lancers and the host UNLV Rebels. Before the CBU game, UNLV sent the regular season champions, Seattle U Redhawks, home earlier than they likely expected, winning in double overtime after a VAR decision awarded the Rebels with a penalty kick for a handball in the box with one second left in a tied game. Instead of going to a shootout, the Rebels got a freebie with essentially no time left on the clock, converted the PK, and won 2-1 in double overtime.
The Redhawks are all but guaranteed an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after an incredible regular season that saw them ranked as high as #9 in Division I, and the outcome benefits the conference as a whole as it almost ensures two WAC teams will represent the league in the NCAA Tournament this year.
The Championship game will be played at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, streamed on ESPN+, with CBU technically representing the home side as the higher seed.
