Box Score

DENVER – Almost a month ago, the Mavericks found themselves on the wrong end of a 4-1 loss at Regis University.  Today, in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference semi-final, Kaitlynn Holt (Wahiawa, Hawaii) found revenge with a shot to the back of the net in the 60th minute, giving the Mavericks a 1-0 semi-final win.

Regis (14-5-0) came into the game as the regular season champion and played well out of the gate, peppering CMU goalie Sarah Schnetzler (Littleton, Colo.) with nine shots and seven on goal in the opening frame.  Schnetzler was tough in goal as she had six first half saves.

In the second half, Colorado Mesa (10-6-4) had a break down the field in the 60th minute.  Kelci Crispe (Lakewood, Colo.) sent a soft touch pass inside the box to Holt who laid it into the corner of the net for the lone goal of the game.  “We gotta take chances,” said Holt.  Regis had plenty of chances late in the contest, but the Maverick defense held tough to secure the 1-0 semi-final win.

Heading into the contest, Head Coach Erin Sharpe knew scroring was going to be at a premium. “I knew this game was going to be very, very close,” said Sharpe.  “Getting that goal was fantastic, but we knew we had 30 more minutes of soccer to play.” 

Holt, all of 5'0", managed to navigate through the tall Ranger defense to get the lone goal of the game.  Sharpe talked about how soccer savy Holt is on the field. "She does a phenominal job of getting herself in the right place at the right time."  Sharpe reminded us that although 5'0", she still has the ability to make big plays. "She also won an overtime game at UCCS with a header off a corner kick."

The game not only had RMAC Championship implications on the line, but NCAA Championship implications as well. "To for sure get in (the NCAA Championships), we have to win the tournament on Sunday," said Schnetzler.  Coach Sharpe echoed those sentiments by saying, "win Sunday, and there is no question."  The Mavericks also want to get it done Sunday so they can bring a RMAC Championship back to Grand Junction.

Looking towards to Sunday's match-up, Coach Sharpe said the biggest key will be to put togeather 90 minutes of soccer.  "We need to take care of our opportunities."  And the Mavericks will have a big task on their hands as they will face Colorado Mines at 1:00pm at Regis University.

Colorado Mines earned their championship bid after winning a 3-1 shootout with Fort Lewis late into the night on Saturday.  CMU will playing their first championship game since 2000. Should the Mavericks pull off their third upset in six days, they will earn the RMAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships.
 
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