OPENING KICK: The Snow College men's soccer team will enter the Region 18 Tournament as the one seed for the first time in program history. The Badgers will take on fourth-seeded Utah State University Eastern Thursday at 1:15 p.m. in Taylorsville.
The Badgers finished the regular season with an overall record of 13-4 and went 11-3 in conference play. The Badgers sit at No. 13 in the country and atop the Scenic West Athletic Conference. Snow College finished ahead of No. 18 Salt Lake Community College (10-2-2), North Idaho College (9-4-1), and USUE (9-4-1).
The Badgers wrapped the regular season with wins over the College of Southern Idaho 5-0 and Truckee Meadows Community College 4-0. The Badgers finished the season winning each of their last four games.
KNOW YOUR FOE: USUE finished the regular season with a 10-4-2 overall record and a conference record of 9-4-1. The Eagles' conference losses came against the three other teams in the tournament, dropping to the Badgers twice (1-0 and 2-1), SLCC (4-0), and NIC (2-1).
The Badgers are 16-8 all-time against USUE and are currently on a four-game winning streak, with the last loss coming in 2023, a 2-1 defeat in Price.
The Badgers in both regular-season games took a combined 35 shots, 11 of which were on net. Their three goals over both games came from
Fred Cotta,
Jack Burman, and
Ryan Henry; the latter two came within the last ten minutes of regulation to secure the victory in Price.
The Badgers have won both previous matchups in the Region 18 Tournament against the Eagles, defeating them in 2022, 3-1, and 2021, 1-0.
LAST TIME OUT: The Badgers opened the game against CSI on a hot foot as they were able to find the first goal of the game in the 10th minute. Aiden Moore was able to feed the ball to
JJ Cubillas, who was able to blast the ball past the CSI keeper on the right side of the net.
The Badgers didn't let up as they scored again in the 23rd minute when
Carter Archuleta powered the ball past the keeper off an assist from
Isaac Stanley. The Badgers would find a couple more opportunities, but couldn't connect as they would enter the half up 2-0.
The Badgers started the second half with a bang as they scored two goals in the first six minutes of the half. The first came in the 48th minute as
Jack Burman was able to break away with a pass from
Francisco Madeira to bury the ball in the back of the net.
The second came three minutes later in the 51st when Stanley converted an opportunity off a pass from Cubillas, marking his seventh goal of the year. The Badgers were able to score one more time to close out the game in the 90th minute, as
Jorge Beltran delivered the ball into the back of the net off the assist of
Kade Davis. The Badgers closed out the game, defeating CSI 5-0.
The Badgers finished the game with 18 shots, eight of which were on net, while limiting the Golden Eagles to nine shots and one on net.
Mathias Christensen recorded one save against CSI, which tied him for the all-time career saves record at 98.
The Badgers turned their attention to TMCC to close out the regular season, needing a win to win the SWAC Championship and clinch the one seed in the Region 18 Tournament.
The Badgers didn't back down from the challenge, as they were able to knock in the first goal of the game in the eighth minute. Moore was able to wrangle the ball after a header attempt by
Josh Kilsby and feed it to
Max Palmer, who was able to score. It was Palmer's second goal of the season.
The Badgers kept up the heat as they powered two more goals back-to-back in the 14th and 16th minutes. The first of which was scored by Burman off an assist from Cubillas for his sixth of the year. The second came when Burman sent a ball across the 18-yard box to Cubillas, who then passed it to Stanely, leaving him one-on-one with the goalie, and he was able to bury the ball in the back of the net.
The Badgers would score one more time in the first half in the 27th minute as Cubillas was able to find Madeira open on the left side of the pitch, and he was able to score for the Badgers' fourth goal of the game.
Christensen recorded his record-setting save in the 34th minute as he left a dropkick short, and TMCC attacked the net. Christensen was able to get a hand on the ball and force it above the net to record his 99th career save. The Badgers kept the Lizards in check defensively as they went into the half up 4-0.
The Badgers were able to record 14 shots against TMCC in the second half, but none of them connected with the back of the net. They also kept the Lizards at bay defensively, as they allowed seven shots, but none of them could get past Christensen as he gathered three more saves in the second half.
The Badgers would go on to close out the game, defeating TMCC 4-0 and claiming the number one seed in the Region 18 Tournament. The Badgers had 31 shots against TMCC, 12 of which were on net.
Christensen finished his regular season with 47 saves, which ties him at 34th in the nation. He has recorded 102 saves so far over his career as a Badger, making him the program's all-time leader.
UP NEXT: If the Badgers defeat USUE, they will face the winner of SLCC/NIC in the Region 18 Championship game. The championship game is slated for Saturday at 2:00 p.m. in Taylorsville. For video streaming and live stat information, visit snowbadgers.com.
