THE RUNDOWN
The Patriots earned their third win of the season, 2-1, against West Texas A&M tonight at Patriot Soccer Field. Gavyn Rosales scored his 12th career goal in the 30th minute to tie Brooks Friedman for fifth in all-time career goals in DBU history. Avery Brazzell grabbed the go-ahead goal in the 56th minute to secure DBU the win.
The Patriots opened the half with a couple of set-piece chances from Evan Pustejovsky and Peyton Voelker,pressuring the WT defense heavily in the first three minutes. Possession evened out as the match entered the 10th minute. In the 13th minute, Voelker was fouled by the Buffs, awarding DBU a free kick outside the box. Gavyn Rosales took the shot, but the attempt was saved by Luke Southerington. Quickly after Garrett McGee was able to show his skills as the Buffs were granted a free kick from Ethan Michael's yellow card. WT opened scoring on the pitch after they were given a set-piece chance in the form of a penalty kick following Evan Lupo's handball in the box. Theo Bennetts was the goal scorer as McGee was not quick enough to stop the shot from speeding to the bottom left corner. The Buffs looked to double their advantage but Quintin John-Benn failed at getting the ball on his left foot allowing Avery Brazzell to come in with the clearance.
Brazzell took advantage of another Buffs' mistake with a steal racing down the pitch on the left side. The ball saw multiple players on the Patriots offense as it was passed around before landing at the feet of Pustejovsky who set it up giving Rosales the chance to ring in the equalizer with a shot on his right foot in the 30th minute. Voelker came barreling down the side after getting a pass from Brazzell and looked to score the goal ahead goal but Southerington was there to block the attempt as the clock entered the 40th minute. In the final seconds of the first half, Bruno Correa attempted the go-ahead goal with a set piece chance in the form of a free kick but the shot was saved, ending the half 1-1.
McGee registered his first save of the second half after Gabriel Nevarez attempted to slot his first goal of the match in the 50th minute. Voelker took a corner kick allowing Jack Golden and Cason Berg to register their first shots of the season but none were able to get past Southerington and his defense. Five minutes later the Patriots were given another set-piece chance with Gavyn Rosales taking the shot. He sent it to the box hitting Golden on the right side who headed it over to Hunter Dierlam. Dierlam then sent a header right to Brazzell, got his right foot on it at the goal line to give DBU the go-ahead goal making the score 2-1.
McGee was once again able to showcase his skills as the Buffs tried to equalize with a shot on goal but he was there with the save keeping DBU in the lead. Rosales looked to register a brace as Voelker was able to get around the WT defenders, sending a pass to Dierlam and then Berg. Rosales got the pass from Berg and sent his shot into the net but he was then called offside inside the 82 minute. Entering the final minute of the match, the Buffs were close to an equalizer as they were given a set-piece chance but McGee was there with a diving save to his right.
THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Tonight's win marks the Patriots first ever victory over West Texas A&M in program history.
- With his goal in the 30th minute, Gavyn Rosales is now tied for fifth with Brooks Friedman all time in career goals in DBU soccer history (12).
- Evan Pustejovsky is now tied with David Balyeat for the fourth most assists in program history (8).
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
5- Garrett McGee recorded a season high of five saves.
13- The Patriots outshot the Buffs 13-11 with six players slotting a shot.
Gavyn Rosales and Payton Voelker dominated the Patriot's offense putting up four shots each.
Jack Golden contributed two shots and
Avery Brazzell,
Cason Berg and
Mason Monroe each contributed one shot as well.
25- The match saw 25 fouls between DBU and WT.
90- Three DBU players played all 90 minutes on the pitch, including
Jack Golden,
Evan Lupo, and
Chase Turcotte.
HEAD COACH JESS JOBE ON THE PATRIOTS HARD-FOUGHT WIN TONIGHT
"We needed three points and that's what we came for and now we are walking away with three points so that's huge; don't want to discount that. The guys fought really hard and put ourselves in a really good position late on so we had to fight back. There are certainly moments in the game that show that this team is still growing and still maturing. They're still figuring out how to play in a competitive conference. Every team and every game we are playing is really competitive. Every team is fighting for three points so we have to figure out how to be a little more consistent in some areas but we are on a roll and we've got a little bit of momentum so we are going to take every bit of good that we can and kind of roll that up and keep going on to the next. We are really pleased because we've only taken points in the last three games, so we just want to build on this win, get on the road Tuesday, and keep going again. I'm proud of the guys, they deserve it, we got the results we wanted and we are happy about that!"
UP NEXT
The Patriots are back on the road as they are set to face Eastern New Mexico on Saturday October 23rd. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.
