WWCC defeats #11 LCCC in Semi-Finals

On Saturday in Cheyenne the second oldest rivals in Region IX the LCCC Golden Eagles and the WWCC Mustangs faced off for just the third time in the Region IX men's soccer tournament, in a semi-final match.  The match was supposed to be played on Friday but due to the snowfall in Cheyenne earlier in the week the match was postponed until Saturday.  In fact the match time was even delayed an hour on Saturday to give the field more time with the sun shinning on it.  The #11 NJCAA ranked team in the nation the Golden Eagles started the match out strong and it looked like they might get a goal or two in the first 10 minutes.  However the Mustangs started to find more possession and were able to find some holes and gaps in the LCCC defense.  A match changing goal happened in the 19th minute when a long ball was sent down the middle and Greg Howard flicked it onto Jarom Stuart who placed the ball in the bottom right corner of the net from about 10 yards out.  This goal gave the Mustangs a 1 - 0 lead and put a lot of pressure on LCCC.  No more goals were scored in the first half but both LCCC and WWCC had some decent looks.  The halftime score was WWCC 1 - LCCC 0.
The second half the Mustangs continued to play tough defense only allowing long, low percentage shots from the Golden Eagles and finding opportunities on counter attacks and by using the wide areas of the pitch.  The match looked like it would end with the Stuart goal in the 19th minute being the match winner, but WWCC was called for a penalty in the 18 yard box awarding the LCCC a penalty kick in the 85th minute.  The Golden Eagles placed a great shot just over the WWCC keeper Mitch Jensen to tie the match at 1 goal a piece.  The match ended regulation in a 1 - 1 tie.  The Mustangs are very accustomed to playing overtime as this match was their 5th overtime in their last 7 matches.
No goals were scored in the first ten minutes of the sudden victory, but WWCC had great chances by Jarom Stuart and Taylor Egbert.  The second overtime had some more missed chances for the Mustangs on good kicks by Richard Harris and Taylor Egbert.  After 20 minutes of overtime play and 110 minutes overall the two teams were still tied.  In tournament play the teams then proceed to penalty shootouts.  This was the first penalty shootout in WWCC history.
The first five kickers for the Mustangs were Logan Anderson, Greg Howard, Taylor Egbert, Jared Jess and Steven Shelley.  Mitch Jensen was the keeper for the Mustangs in the shootout.  LCCC kicked first and made their first shot as it hit the right post and bounced in, the first WWCC kicker Logan Anderson made his shot, which also hit the post and rolled in.  The second LCCC kicker missed the target and Greg Howard, the second WWCC kicker, made his penalty kick.  After 2 kicks LCCC 1 - WWCC 2.  The third LCCC kicker repeated the same mistake as the second and missed the goal but not the WWCC captain Taylor Egbert.  WWCC had a 3 - 1 lead after three kicks.  The fourth LCCC kicker calmly hit his shot but so did Jared Jess the WWCC kicker.  This score won the shootout for the Mustangs by a score of 4 - 2 in penalties.  Officially this is a 2 - 1 win for the Mustangs.
The Mustang's win brings them to a 12 - 8 - 1 overall record and they now advance to the Region IX tournament championship match played on Sunday October 28th at 2pm.  This is the second time that the Mustangs have ever made it to the Region IX Championship match, the other time was 2008.  The win also means that the Mustangs qualify for the West District Tournament next weekend Friday and Saturday November 1 - 2.  The other teams that will participate in the West District Tournament are North Idaho College, Northwest College (WY) and Yavapai College (AZ).

Match Facts; Shots – WWCC 15, LCCC 34; Assists – WWCC 1, LCCC 0; Saves – WWCC 14, LCCC 4; Free Kicks – WWCC 24, LCCC 19; Corner Kicks – WWCC 1, LCCC 8; Cards – WWCC 5, LCCC 1

Mustang Man of the Match – Logan Anderson - Logan and the WWCC defense shut down the LCCC high powered offense and even scored the first kick in the penalty shootout.

Up Next for the Mustangs –Sunday October 28th vs Northwest College  (Region IX Tournament - Finals) at Cheyenne WY, LCCC campus at 2:00pm.