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The UNM men’s soccer team took a gamble that paid off during Sunday’s match against Denver University, resulting in a 1-0 win for the Lobos.
Head coach Jeremy Fishbein said the key moment in the game came when junior midfielder Michael Kafari was injured, which allowed redshirt sophomore forward Carson Baldinger to replace him in the first overtime. This changed the lineup, shifting junior midfielder Michael Calderon’s zone on the field.
“We rolled the dice a little bit to make that substitution,” Fishbein said. “It put Calderon deeper in the attack field. It could have backfired, but we needed to take the chance to get the win.”
Senior forward Devon Sandoval kicked in the game-winner in the 106th minute after Calderon launched the ball toward a Denver defender, who then misplayed the ball past his own goalie to allow Sandoval to take advantage from nine yards out.
Sandoval said he was relieved that he was able to score his eighth goal of the season after being shut out most of the game.
“I hate it when I can’t score two goals every game,” he said. “I really wanted to score today, and I was happy that I was able to put it behind the net even though it was an ugly win.”
Fishbein said the 1-0 loss against Air Force last Friday and Sunday’s win over the Pioneers built up tension because of all the missed opportunities.
“We should have put them away earlier in the game,” he said. “It’s frustrating to be the much better team. It will make us better though.”
UNM shot 18 times and had 11 corner kicks, compared to only 11 shots and four corner kicks for Denver.
Fishbein said UNM’s No. 5 ranking and home-unbeaten streak took a mental toll on the team.
“There was a lot of weight on the guys’ shoulders this weekend,” he said. “It’s exciting at times, but sometimes it feels like a responsibility to them. The longer the games went on, the more nerves they had. But it will be good to get back on the road again.”
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New Mexico (9-2, 2-1-0 MPSF) will head back to Colorado to face off against Air Force on Friday and Denver (5-3-3, 0-2-1 MPSF) on Sunday.
Despite a .500 record the last two games, Fishbein said he thinks the team was in a rough patch and will improve overall.
“I think we’re going to hit a level in which we get really good again,” he said. “Inevitably, we found a plateau. But the mark of a great team is one that can get past that.”
