By Kim Christenson
The Cougars were unable to pull out a win in their second playoff game against the Fresno Fuego Saturday night, ending their season with a 3-0 loss and a 14-2-2 record.
“We just didn’t click very well tonight,” said BYU defender Clay Christenson. “The effort was there, the team played hard, but scoring didn’t come as easy tonight as it usually does.”
The Fuego was awarded a penalty kick in the 5th minute. Amaury Nunes took the kick and scored the Fuego’s first goal. Pablo Campos went on to score the Fuego’s last two goals.
Both teams had equal shots on goal, evening out with ten each. Despite Saturday’s loss, this has been the men’s soccer team’s best season since entering the PDL. But the game against Fresno isn’t the Cougars’ only loss this season. Six players are leaving the team after having finished their senior year, and assistant coach Brian Jolley will also be leaving after receiving a promotion in his teaching career. Jolley has been with the team as a player and then assistant coach for fifteen years.
“It’s been an absolute magical season,” Jolley said. “It didn’t end the way we wanted it to, but we’ve experienced great successes on and off the field. That’s everything a team could hope for aside from the championships.”
The Fresno Fuego will go on to the conference championships against the Laredo Heat. The Cougars will resume play in the fall with exhibition matches. For more information, visit soccer.byu.edu.
