Dixie State set a new Pacific West Conference record for wins with its 13
th league victory overall as the Trailblazers outlasted California Baptist by a 2-1 count on Senior Day at Legend Solar Stadium.
DSU (15-3-0/13-0-0) won its school-record 15
th-straight match to close out the regular season and became just the second PacWest school to finish a conference season unbeaten and untied, joining former league member Grand Canyon, which went 6-0-0 in the league's first season in 2006. Dixie State's 13 conference wins also eclipsed GCU's previous record of 12 wins set in 2010 and matched by GCU in 2012.
Dixie State broke a scoreless tie in the 53
rd-minute of play when sophomore
Dominic Damato (Las Vegas, Nev./Shadow Ridge HS) played a center ball into freshman
Angel Estrada (Pasadena, Calif./Pasadena HS), who turned around and booted home his third goal of the year into the lower left corner of the net to stake DSU to a 1-0 lead. The Trailblazers struck again midway through the 76
th-minute as senior
Bernard Manuel (Ghana, West Africa/Elko (NV) HS) headed in his second goal in three matches off a strong throw in by junior
Bryan Baugh (Henderson, Nev./Green Valley HS) to give his side a two-goal cushion.
CBU (12-6-0/8-5-0) got one of the goals back on a Luca Tschaidse penalty kick conversion at the 76:45 mark, but that would be as close as the Lancers would get as DSU's defense held CBU without a shot attempt the rest of the way to close out the match.
Both teams finished with 13 total shot attempts, while Dixie State held a decisive 9-4 edge in shots on goal. Senior goalkeeper
Bradley Trella (Chandler, Ariz./Chandler HS) made three saves in picking up his own school-record tying 10
th win of the season and 20
th-career victory in a DSU kit in his final start on the Legend Solar Stadium pitch.
Dixie State will now await to find out if it will be awarded its first-ever NCAA Tournament bid as the 2016 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Selection announcement will take place this Monday, Nov. 7, at 4:30 p.m. (MT).
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