On a drizzly, foggy night in Dallas, Texas, it felt light years away from September 1st when the Pioneers (12-3-5) defeated the SMU Mustangs 3-1 at Pioneer Field. In the rematch Sunday night, the Mustangs used a dominant first half and barely hung on as Denver fought back from a 2-0 deficit to fall 2-1 in the second round of the NCAA College Cup Tournament.

In the first half, an unlikely long, looping throw-in by the Mustangs at 22:18 changed everything. The ball made it into the goal box and glanced off SMU’s Bailey Sparks head – the ball bounced off the ground and gently slipped through keeper Isaac Neheme’s hands into goal. At that point, the Mustangs took over the first half with 70% of the possession. Six minutes before the end of the half, SMU’s Jose Ortiz sent a rifle shot from 20 yards out into the lower left corner of the goal, 2-0, Mustangs.

Denver came out with more aggression and possession in the second half. A violent collision between DU’s Bryce Willoughby and the SMU keeper Cole Johnson resulted in a penalty kick goal by DU’s Sam Basset, 2-1, at 67:43. Suddenly, what was a rout turned into a match. A desperate Denver side pulled forward into the Mustang defensive zone. In the final five minutes, Denver battled back and found the SMU goalpost three times in the final four minutes. DU’s best chance came at 4:00 minutes when a Tyler Schommer shot went off the right post. A DU corner kick at 87:48 ricocheted off the top crossbar. Another Oje Ofunrein shot in the goal box with 40 seconds remaining found woodwork. Denver could not find the equalizer before time expired.

Despite a poor first half, DU generated the best chances in the second half. Denver left it all on the field despite losing three of their best players earlier in the season to injury. Head Coach Jamie Franks and his team should feel good about their effort in this second-round NCAA Tournament defeat. Still, one wonders what might have been without a depleted roster fighting #6 seed SMU even-up on the road.