DENVER – There were some empty seats at Sunday's Denver Broncos game.
 
Among them were those tickets held by a group that included MSU Denver men's soccer coach Nick Kirchhof.
 
"We were planning on going to the Broncos game, but then the (RMAC soccer) games kept getting delayed (because of weather)," Kirchhof said. "Finally, my (former college roommate) came over and said, 'Let's not go to the Broncos game, this is way too exciting.'"
 
Kirchhof, MSU Denver assistant coach Eric Bracy and Kirchhof's former college roommate were among the people huddled in the MSU Denver athletics office, watching events play out across the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
 
The final day of soccer was must-see viewing throughout the player roster as well.
 
"There were groups of guys all watching together, and then we were all on the same text thread," Kirchhof said.
 
And finally, the Roadrunners got the one result they needed, with Colorado Christian upsetting Colorado School of Mines, to get into the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament.
 
And, now that they're in, all bets are off.
 
Even though they are the sixth seed, MSU Denver has proven itself capable of challenging everyone in the RMAC.
 
They'll play at third-seeded CSU Pueblo, the third seed ranked tied for 15^th in Division II, in a first-round game Thursday at 7 p.m.
 
The Roadrunners opened conference play with a 2-0 defeat at then-No. 7 CSU Pueblo on Sept. 28.
 
"We gave up goals that were too easy, and that changed the game," Kirchhof said. "And we needed to pass the ball better, to be braver on the ball, and make Pueblo chase us instead of us chasing them. Looking back, we're a different team than we were then, so that makes this fun and exciting."
 
The ThunderWolves, the defending national runner-up, had a little bit of trouble during league play while finishing 6-3-1.
 
The RMAC now has three teams ranked in the national top 25, with Fort Lewis at No. 12 and Colorado Mesa at No. 21 joining CSU Pueblo in the ratings.
 
And the six teams in the RMAC Tournament all finished within four points of one another in the standings: Fort Lewis had 21, Mesa and CSU Pueblo each had 19, Westminster and UCCS each had 18, and MSU Denver 17.
 
The Roadrunners were also 4-0-2 their last six games, making them one of the hottest teams in the league.
 
"This time of the year, everyone knows a little bit more about each other, and everyone is a little more banged up, some more than others," Kirchhof said. "At this point of the year, anybody can beat anybody, and that's shown in how tight everyone finished in the conference. All six teams in the tournament have the opportunity to win it, and that's really exciting."
 
The MSU Denver-CSU Pueblo winner will play Sunday at 1 p.m. at second-seeded Colorado Mesa. Fort Lewis will play host to the Westminster-UCCS winner.
 
The championship, with the winner earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, is Nov. 11.
 
"We have the opportunity to extend our season, and we're excited that we're still playing," Kirchhof said. "We didn't have our best performances early, but since then we've gotten a little better, a little sharper, every week. And we're definitely battled-tested from our non-conference games and our conference schedule. We just played four games in a week and had two wins and two ties against good opponents, so we're really confident and excited to get going."