Fort Lewis FLC (4-0-4, 0-0-0)

Colorado Mesa CMU (3-3-1, 0-0-0)

Fort Lewis FLC

(4-0-4, 0-0-0)

Final

Sep. 29, 2024

Colorado Mesa CMU

(3-3-1, 0-0-0)

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Fort Lewis FLC	1	0	1
Colorado Mesa CMU	0	0	0

Summary
Box Score

Kaitlyn Silva

Tomas Duenes (11) drives into the ThunderWolves penalty box on Dirks Field (Sep. 26, 2024)

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | 9/29/2024 6:17:00 PM | Hayden Mangan, Assistant AD-Communications & Fan Engagement

No. 18 Skyhawks shutout Mavericks on the road to clinch unbeaten non-conference record

Duenes nets third goal of the season

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – It was déjà vu up at Community Hospital Unity Field as the No. 18-ranked Fort Lewis men's soccer team marched into Grand Junction and shut out Colorado Mesa 1-0 on its home pitch to close out an undefeated non-conference schedule. The Skyhawks will enter Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play with a 4-0-4 record, while the Mavericks fall to 3-3-1 on the year.

"We started off well, and the quick goal was a great way to get out on our front foot early," Fort Lewis College Men's Soccer Head Coach David Oberholtzert shared. "I thought we played well in general across the match. We started to show fatigue towards the end, especially with a limited number of substitutions available, but I'm proud of the guys for fighting it out through the end."

Fort Lewis drew first blood early when, in only the third minute, Tristen Banquil got a foot to a clearing pass from the Mavericks back line, allowing senior Tomas Duenes to jump his defender from just over 20 yards out to gain possession. Duenes drove into the penalty box and as the goalkeeper came out, Duenes placed a right-footed strike off the turf and inside the left post past a sliding defender for his third goal of the season. Banquil also picked up his second assist of the season.

Sophomore goalkeeper Lucas Martin, who made five saves in last season's 3-0 shutout over CMU, picked up six saves on the afternoon against ten total shots en route to his fourth shutout of the season and the seventh of his career.

It was Fort Lewis who, despite scorching conditions, led in a physical battle that saw the Skyhawks lead the Mavericks in total shots 15 to 10 with the Mavericks committing 14 fouls to FLC's eight. Both sides took two corner kicks.

Duenes led the Skyhawks with six total shots on the afternoon, while Vincent Edgell added a trio from his boot, and David Citron added another pair of shots as well. Justin Ibrahim and Riccardo Legnante each supplied two shots for Colorado Mesa, but it was Legnante who targeted both on frame. Additionally, CMUs Diego Chavez made four total saves.

Notables
-Fort Lewis has now won three consecutive matches over Colorado Mesa to lead the all-time series 17-8-5 and 11-4-1 on the road. In addition, the Skyhawks have posted back-to-back shutouts on the Mavericks home pitch.
-The Skyhawks complete their non-conference schedule with an unbeaten 4-0-4 record. The last time FLC completed an unbeaten non-conference schedule, outside of the 2020 fall season played in the spring of 2021 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic in which the Skyhawks defeated Westminster 1-0 in its only non-conference game of the season, was 2019 with a record of 2-0-2.
-FLC enters Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play with a 1-0-3 record at home and a 2-0-1 record on the road.
-Tomas Duenes scored his third goal of the season and the 19^th of his career to now lead the Skyhawks roster in total goals.
-Tristen Banquil recorded the second assist of this season and for his career in only 198 minutes on the pitch for FLC.
-The last time Fort Lewis registered a goal in the first ten minutes of the match was in last season's 5-2 victory over Colorado School of Mines (Oct. 20, 2023) when Loic Jean-Baptiste scored in the 1^st minute followed by Anton Hjalmarsson in the 3^rd minute.
-The Skyhawks have won back-to-back road matches and have a 4-0-0 record when scoring the first goal.
-FLC closes out its non-conference schedule with a 1-0-1 record against opponents ranked on, or receiving votes on, the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll.

Defend the Title
The nationally ranked Skyhawks will now begin its ten-game sprint through the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference schedule to not only reach the NCAA Tournament for a second straight season but also to defend its 2023 RMAC Regular Season Title. First up for Fort Lewis is a road match at Colorado Christian (2-1-4) at Trailblazer Stadium next Friday, Oct. 4, at noon.

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