Lakewood, CO - A sunny Tuesday afternoon saw the Cougars in full gear, flying past West Texas A&M 3-0. A first half goal and two second half goals propelled the Cougars to their first win of the season and shutout in their home opener.
Bouncing back after a road loss, the Cougars came out on the front foot, immediately applying pressure to the Buffs backline. A physical game, both teams traded fouls, the game remaining scoreless for the first 30 minutes.
Bodie Curtis would change the script, scoring his first collegiate goal to break the deadlock. Kyler Carr whipped a ball sprayed wide first time, Curtis diving just outside the far post. The connection was perfect, the ball finding the back of the net for the Cougars first goal of the year.
CCU continued to apply pressure,
Tiago Gomes firing a shot just over the bar with seconds to close the half. Both teams would enter the locker room with the Cougars up 1-0.
Both teams would come out of half in high tempo, each looking for the next goal. As the 73 minute mark hit, Ben Brown would streak down the sideline firing a cross to the head of
Casey DeVito, forcing a quick reaction save from the Buffs keeper. Determined, DeVito lunged for the bouncing ball, knocking the ball past the keeper to put the Cougs up 2-0.
And they weren't done. Just 6 minutes later, Ben Brown flicked a ball over the backline to
Rayce Haldy, sprinting to the touchline and cutting the ball back across. Finding Brown again, Brown notched the ball back towards the 6 yard line finding a streaking
Antonio Lugo for the wide open finish. The goal marked Lugo's first collegiate goal in just his second game.
The match would end 3-0 to CCU, a dominant performance for the home opener. The Cougars would outshoot the Buffs 14-13, the chippy match seeing 31 total fouls and 7 yellow cards.
Bodie Curtis,
Casey DeVito, and
Antonio Lugo would all see their first goals of the season. Ben Brown notched 2 assists, while
Kylar Carr and
Rayce Haldy each had one of their own.
Campbell Wolfgram would see the entirety of the match between the posts for his first shutout of the year with 2 saves.
The Cougars will be back in action shortly, hosting Concordia Irvine on Thursday, September 3
rd. Kickoff is set for 11am MST at Trailblazer Stadium.
