SAN ANTONIO, Tex. (September 7, 2023) - The No. 12 ranked Colorado State University Pueblo men's soccer team went on the road for a second straight time and defeated a nationally-ranked St. Mary's University team, winning 2-0 on Thursday against the No. 3 Rattlers in nonconference play at Sigma Beta Chi Field. 

In the match, CSU Pueblo totaled 13 shots and six corners. The Pack received its goals from Ricardo Schroeder Jr. (Sr., Parana, Brazil) in the 25th minute and Aden O'Hara (Jr., Melbourne, Fla.) in the 39th minute.

The ThunderWolves were led offensively by Gabriel Campora (Sr., Saltillo, Mexico) with three shots and one landing on goal. 

The story of the night however was another another strong outing on the defensive end, resulting in the clean sheet. The Pack defense faced five shots in the game and seven total corner kicks. 

During the first half, the Pack came out with high energy and was the more aggressive team on both sides of the ball. The Pack defense played a strong first half, fending off two shots and three corner kicks.

Starting the match, St. Mary's earned a first corner after just four minutes passed that was cleared by the defense.

The Pack responded a minute later and earned their first corner and header shot.

Campora fired his first shot at 13:01 that was blocked and with 26 minutes showing on the clock, the ThunderWolves earned another corner and defended well by the Rattlers.

After a yellow card was issued, the Pack applied great pressure on the ball and the defense, resulting in a loose ball gathered in by the Pack. The offense kept possession on their half of the pitch and a nice give-and-go between Campora and Schroeder Jr., allowed for the 1-0 lead goal.

The Pack defense continued to hold their own and played well against all of the corners and scoring chances.

During the 39th minute, a failed clear attempt by St. Mary's gave the ThunderWolves the ball and Caio Oliveira (Sr., Espigao d'Oeste, Brazil) drove down field to the left side of the box and hit a low pass in to O'Hara who settled the ball and struck a laser into the right side of the net for a 2-0 lead.

At the break, CSU Pueblo led 6-2 in shots and the Rattlers held a 3-1 corner kick lead.

In the second half, the Pack continued to play strong on defense and limited the scoring chances through the first 20 minutes of the half.

Pack goalkeeper Tristan Whitlock (So., Lincoln, Neb.) earned his first clean and made three saves against three shots from the Rattlers.

Over the last twenty minutes, the Pack controlled the ball and the play at midfield was superb and was able to shut down any formidable attacks by the home team.

CSU Pueblo (2-0-1) will finish its season-opening road trip with a match Saturday at St. Edward's starting at 11 a.m. (MT) in Austin, Texas.