GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – Colorado Mesa followed a familiar formula by taking a close game and pulling away in the second half, this time to secure a win over the conference's longtime power.

Second-half goals from Lluis Fabregat and Manuel Ponce Casas lifted CMU to a 3-2 victory over Colorado School of Mines, a massive win over the program which has secured the past six RMAC regular-season titles. Colorado Mesa improves to 7-2-2 overall this season and 2-0-1 in the RMAC while extending their unbeaten streak to eight games since starting the season 1-2.

The Mavericks collected the win despite being outshot 14-8 by the Orediggers, who put seven shots on goal compared to CMU's five. Colorado Mesa also outscored Mines 2-1 in the second half despite the Orediggers having an 11-5 shots advantage in that period. Diego Chavez made three saves to get the win for CMU while Maverick defenders cleared the ball off the line twice.

Colorado Mesa drew first blood less than five minutes into the match, when Connor Chilson's perfectly weighted cross from the right side found the head of Fernando Morales, who directed it into the right side netting from close range on a counter-attack with 4:45 on the match clock.

It was Morales' seventh goal this season, extending his team lead, and the first career point for Chilson, a redshirt freshman defender from Vista, California. Chilson entered the match with just 36 minutes played in his career over three games but earned his first career start on Thursday and logged 62 minutes at right back for the Mavs.

Mines answered in the 28^th minute with a goal from senior forward Chris Seery, sending the teams to the locker rooms at halftime tied 1-1. It was the 10^th goal of Seery's career.

Like they have so many times this season, the Mavs turned on the accelerators in the second half to take control of the match. They got a go-ahead goal in the 57^th minute when the Orediggers were unable to clear their lines off a Mesa throw and the ball ricocheted back to Lluis Fabregat. The Spaniard directed the ball to Moises Martinez, who flicked it on to Joey Joiner, who then worked it back to Martinez and back to Fabregat – each player taking two touches or less – and Fabregat found himself one-on-one and fired low into the bottom left corner past the Mines keeper for the lead.

It was Fabregat's first goal for Colorado Mesa and the first goal in American collegiate soccer for the senior, who is an exchange student from Spain that joined the Maverick roster just days before the season began but has now established himself as a consistent starter at left back.

Colorado Mesa got a third goal 10 minutes later. Moses Magens made a long, winding run with the ball into Mines territory but was eventually dispossessed by an Oredigger defender. The defender's intended pass backwards towards goal took a major deflection off a second Mines defender, which popped the ball up in the air in no man's land behind the Mines defense. First to react was sophomore forward Manuel Ponce Casas, who won the race to the ball, controlled his dribble and fired far post across goal into the bottom left corner for his fourth goal of the season.

Mines didn't go down without a fight, taking eight corner kicks in the second half and forcing CMU into four saves. The home team got a goal back off a corner kick in the 89^th minute. Raymond Jackson initially made a fantastic goal-line clearance off a headed shot attempt, but it was CMU's turn to have an attempted clearance go off a defender, this time into the net for an own goal. The Maverick were able to run out the remaining 1:30 without further incident, however, securing the points.

Caden Allaire made one save while conceding three goals in 71 minutes for the Orediggers before freshman Peter Saunders made his collegiate debut in the game's final 19 minutes, drawing a yellow card for handling the ball outside the penalty area but making a save on the ensuing free kick. Colorado School of Mines is in danger of their six-season regular season championship streak being snapped, as the Orediggers are now 1-4-5 overall and off to an 0-2-1 start in conference.

Colorado Mesa will return home Sunday to face MSU Denver at noon, which will be the first half of a doubleheader with the No. 4 women's program also facing the Roadrunners immediately afterwards at 3 p.m. Both matches will be streamed on the RMAC Network.