Men's soccer places second

The Weber State University Men's Soccer Club lost the championship game in a close match to the University of Colorado at a regional tournament hosted by Colorado Mountain College from Oct. 10-12. "It was a disappointing loss," said WSU Head Coach Will Rader. "We didn't play well and didn't do any of the things we've been training for in the tournament at all." The 'Cats led 2-0 with only 15 minutes remaining in the game when the Buffaloes stormed back and tied the game at 2-2 just before the 90-minute regulation period ended. According to tournament rules, to break a tie, the teams first compete in a five-minute Golden Goal match; meaning, whoever scores first wins. Neither team scored in the first overtime period, or in the second. After two scoreless periods, the team's fate was sealed in a shootout. Four players from each team stood in the spotlight with a chance to shoot on goal. Jeff Rogers scored as the first shooter for the Wildcats. WSU players Joseph Hickman, Bryan Freeman and Garrett Swift all followed Rogers, but each had his shot blocked. Colorado's players scored three out of four shots to win the match. "That was not acceptable for our team," Rader said. "We have key players that missed penalty kicks. They didn't give our team a chance to win. If they don't show up and do their job, everyone is going to fail." Club President Rogers echoed the coach's disappointment. "On our side we have to make them," Rogers said. "There is no excuse. If it ever happens again hopefully people learned their lesson, and we put it away." The Wildcats are 16-2-1, losing only their second game of the season to Colorado. Both of their losses have come in tournament championship matches. The Wildcats will look to learn how to finish if they're going to be able to win the national championship they're hoping for. "We need to finish the chances we have," Rogers said. "In tournaments and regional matches we have gotten two, four, or even five chances to score in a game, and it has been OK to miss a couple because we still score one or two of them and win the game. At regionals and nationals you usually don't get chances like that, and if you do, you've got to put them away." The Wildcats came into the Colorado tournament as the favorites and returning champions from the previous year. Weber State played in a bracket with seven other teams. The four teams in its pool included the Colorado, Colorado State University and Salt Lake Community College. After a slow first half in their first game, the Wildcats turned it on in the second half to beat CSU 3-0. It looked to be a promising start to the tournament as WSU finished on several long shots. In the second game of the tournament, the 'Cats faced a tough and physical match against Colorado. After a game full of defensive stops from both teams, Nate Bringhurst of WSU snuck one into the goal late in the second half. The Wildcat defense controlled the tempo the rest of the game for a 1-0 win. For the third time this season WSU faced SLCC in its third game of the tournament. The Wildcats had previously defeated the Bruins 1-0 in Salt Lake and 2-0 at Weber State. The Wildcats won their third consecutive game of the tournament 1-0. "The score doesn't reflect how good we played," Rogers said. "We played extremely well, but it was the same story on a different day; we had plenty of opportunities, but couldn't put the ball away." Weber State plays Utah State University at home on Saturday, Oct. 18, at 3 p.m. in its last regular season game. The 'Cats will then host the region six tournament Oct. 24-26. The top eight teams in the region have accepted invitations to play. These teams include WSU, SLCC, USU, Idaho State University, the University of Utah, Utah Valley State College, the University of Oregon and Portland State University. The winner will get an automatic bid to the national tournament. The National Intramural-Sports Association will hold nationals on Nov. 19-23 in Alabama. "Our biggest focus at regionals is securing a spot in the national tournament," said WSU forward Clay Perry, a two-year starter. "There is no reason that we shouldn't. It would be a big let down if we didn't. We still might be able to advance if we lose, but it is very iffy." To advance to national competition, the 'Cats will look to make some improvements and get everybody on the same page. "We couldn't put the ball away," Rogers said about the team's recent loss to Colorado. "We need to fix it in a hurry. If we don't score goals, we won't win the games." WSU has about two weeks, four practices and one game remaining before regionals to make their final surge onto the 2009 national soccer stage.