PUEBLO, Colo. (Oct. 30, 2022) - No. 10 Colorado State University Pueblo men's soccer team earned its second consecutive trip to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament Final after beating Westminster College 3-2, Sunday at Art & Lorraine Gonzales Stadium.

CSU Pueblo, the 2-seed in the tournament clinched its spot after battling the Griffins and earning the right to face top-seed and No. 15 Colorado School of Mines on Friday at 6 p.m. in Golden.

In the match, the ThunderWolves received scores from Mario Sandoval, Caio Oliveira and Gabriel Campora.

The Pack started quick out of the gate and put the pressure on the visitors. 

During the 18', Sandoval was able to put one into the back of the net after taking a pass from Lamar Bynum and give the ThunderWolves a 1-0 lead.

The ThunderWolves carried the lead into the break and entering intermission, CSU Pueblo had recorded five shots against two from WC.

In the second half, Westminster came out with high energy and as a result, were able to score less than two minutes into the half and tie the game at 1-1.

The tied game was short lived as Oliveira was able to fire a shot from 25-yards out during the 47th minute, to give the Pack a 2-1 lead.

The physical play continued throughout the second half and the play by the Pack midfielders was a big part of keeping the Griffins from any scoring chances for nearly 20 minutes of action.

CSU Pueblo added its third goal when Campora hustled and tracked down a loose ball and gathered himself during the 75' and fired a shot out of the reach of the Griffins goalkeeper for a 3-1 lead.

Reggie Nicolas was given an assist on the play.

Westminster kept the pressure and cut the lead to one after scoring with less than four minutes left in regulation.

The ThunderWolves defense was able to prevent the Griffins from getting another good look at the net.

At the net, Nils Roth made three saves before Will Whitworth came on in the final moments.

CSU Pueblo (15-3-1) will face Mines for a third time this season in the tournament final on Friday at 6 p.m. at Stermole Stadium. In the first meeting, CSU Pueblo won 4-0 on Sept. 15 at home and scored a 2-0 victory on the road on Oct. 13.