DENVER – Noah Hannula scored in the game's fourth minute and that was all MSU Denver needed to post a 1-0 victory over Colorado Christian on Friday in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference men's soccer.
Hannula finished off what basketball aficionados would call the old give-and-go.
First he made a nice lead pass from the midfield to
Aidan Bates, who tracked it down and eventually fed it back to Hannula, who was sprinting down the middle towards the goal. Hannula put his shot past the goalkeeper for his fourth career goal – and first this season. Hannula was out for this season's first six games.
"We scored a fantastic goal off a great counter-attack," MSU Denver coach
Nick Kirchhof said. "Aidan had great composure and was able to flip Noah, who was making a great run from deep and then made a great slot finish. I'm really pleased for Noah – he was making his first start of the year and we've really missed his presence."
The Roadrunners kept Colorado Christian in check all day – a day that included a lightning delay of about 90 minutes – holding the Cougars to just two shots on goal, both in the second half.
"I'm really pleased with how we competed today as a group," Kirchhof said. "We limited their chances quite a bit – they didn't have any shots on goal in the first half.
"(Center back) Jackson (Vander Ven) performed really well, dealing with a lot of balls in the air and cleaning up a lot of stuff in the back."
Goalkeeper
Ross Miller posted his sixth shutout of the season and hasn't allowed a goal – other than on two penalty kicks – in more than 475 minutes.
The Roadrunners improved to 8-1-2 overall and are 2-0-1 in the RMAC. The overall record matches the program's best since the 2000 team opened 9-1-1. (The 2007 team was also 8-1-2.) The Roadrunners are unbeaten through three league games for the first time since 2016.
MSU Denver is tied for second in the RMAC with UCCS and on Sunday at noon plays host to first-place Colorado School of Mines (6-3-2, 3-0).
"Today was a really good overall team performance, and we're looking forward to the opportunity again Sunday," Kirchhof said.
