UNLV Men’s soccer defeated the Tulsa Hurricanes 2-0 at Peter Johann Soccer Field to open up the 2024 season with a 1-0 start on Aug. 22.
The match opened with early striking opportunities for both teams.
In the match’s first minute, Tyler Ware cut into the box and struck a low shot, which goalkeeper Alex Lopez caught.
In the 14th minute, Camilo Vargas ran into the box and struck a dangerous cross that Louis Hiepen cleared for a corner kick.
Gyuwon Chong played a short corner to Jared Aguilar, who crossed it to Bowen McCloud and headed the ball past UNLV’s Hugo Lemos, but the play was called offside.
In the 21st minute, Chong played a crosser to Vargas, whose shot found the hands of goalkeeper Lemos.
In the 27th minute, Gabe Sanchez played a cross to Ware, who played it to Mikah Madrid for a volley blocked by Tulsa’s defense for a corner kick.
On the corner attempt, Nico Lopez passed the ball to Ware, who attempted a header to Gelebart, which Lopez denied.
In the 44th minute, Lincoln Aquino played a through ball to Ware, who went one-on-one with Lopez, but the shot attempt deflected out-of-bounds.
The first half continued to see the Rebels primarily play defense, struggling to contain Tulsa’s aggressive play.
Center back and captain Louis Hiepen described the challenge of staying composed under pressure, emphasizing the importance of defending and maintaining control of emotions.
“It’s a lot of work, it’s a lot of defending,” Hiepen said. “You gotta control your emotions. You can’t get frustrated with not keeping the ball. We talk with the team about loving to defend. Sometimes we practice 11 on 4, so we know how it feels when you are constantly under pressure.”
The game shifted dramatically in the second half as UNLV switched into a more offensively oriented team.
Brophy Howard and Madrid led the charge with two stunning goals, which Head Coach BJ Craig attributed to the turnaround of the players’ mentality and determination, noting team chemistry and the energy from home-field advantage.
“It’s the players that make it happen,” Craig said. “We haven’t played in a while. It’s our third week of the season, and we’re just getting to know each other. We have some new faces that debuted like Sawyer who’s a local player. We had some local older players get on and learn how to play with each other. I think part of tonight was just the mentality of we’re at home, we are going to take the second half.”
In the second half at the 52nd minute, Will Applegate switched the field to Ty Sanchez, who ran down the right wing, striking a low shot that Lemos caught.
In the 57th minute, Bryce Allred ran through the middle of the field, blazing past the Tulsa defense, and struck a low power shot from outside the 18-yard box that rattled the left post and bounced out.
In the 64th minute, UNLV counter-attacked, as Jonah Craig switched the field to Howard, who ran down the left wing and struck a power shot from outside the box past Lopez to put the Rebels 1-0 up.
The Hurricanes struck back with a quick attack as Aguilar got the ball from outside the box and blasted a shot that slipped out of Lemos’s hands but recovered the ball from crossing the goal line.
In the 69th minute, Nico Lopez’s freekick could not penetrate the Hurricane defense. Still, Madrid struck the ball on a curling volley that flew into the left post, towering over Lopez in goal, putting the Rebels 2-0 up.
In the 81st minute, Allred received the ball and struck a powerful low shot that Lopez saved at point-blank.
In the 86th minute, Aimar Membrila played a cross to Applegate, who headed it to the top corner, but Lemos extended his arm to parry the ball away.
Despite a late push from Tulsa, UNLV held firm in the closing minutes to hold off Tulsa and start their season with a win.
Coach Craig expressed gratitude for the fan support, which he believes contributed significantly to the team’s performance.
“I was so excited, I know it was so early for school starting, but I just wanted to thank everyone so much,” Craig said. “You asked about the second half; the fans grew in the second half. The team loves playing in front of our city, school, and community, and they really helped us. So maybe that is the secret sauce. It’s not a coaching comment or anything else.”
The Rebels are on the road to play against the Dayton Flyers on Aug. 29 for its first game of a four game road trip. Kickoff will be at 3:00 p.m.
