Fort Collins, CO – In the longest game in team history, the #4 Colorado State Rams could not hold on to a 10-7 lead in the fourth quarter and eventually fell in the fifth overtime to the unranked Utah Utes 11-10. Both teams had several chances in the overtime sessions before Mike Calvert swept from behind and finished a shot to give Utah a key RMLC victory and only their second ever in the series against the Rams. Utah scored three goals in the final 4:42 to tie the game and then scored the dramatic game winner with 3:19 remaining in the fifth overtime period.
As the fifth overtime began, Utah got the ball behind to Calvert, who went hard to the goal and finished a shot while diving to the ground to send the Utes pouring on to the field to celebrate their biggest victory in years. Not only did they defeat the Rams, but by virtue of their victory over the University of Colorado on Friday afternoon, they secured either the #1 or #2 seed for the RMLC tournament in Salt Lake City later in the spring.
The game was nip and tuck throughout as both teams battled hard. Utah certainly seemed to be the team with more energy despite the fact that they had played a game the previous afternoon. The Utes led at the end of three quarters 6-5, but CSU scored 5 of the game’s next 6 goals to stake out to a 10-7 lead. Utah never folded and led by attackman Matt Qualey’s 2 goals in the final 1:25, tied the game up with just :22 to go. Qualey led all scorers with 4 goals and 1 assist.
The overtime periods saw both teams have extended offensive possessions that could have resulted in a sudden-victory for either squad at any given time. While Utah was stifled by CSU’s Garrett Fitzgerald (Regis Jesuit HS; CO) twice on a man-up in the fourth overtime, the Rams hit two pipes over the course of the extra periods and also ran into some hot goaltending by Utah freshman Andrew Martinelli.
CSU rode the efforts of attackmen Kevin Wolff (Don Bosco Prep; NJ) and Paul Larson (Columbine HS; CO), who each had three points on the day. Junior midfielder Joel Tromburg (Heritage HS; CO) had perhaps his best game as a Ram, scoring 2 goals and pitching in with a terrific overall effort. Ryan MacDonald (Smoky Hill HS; CO) had 2 goals as well. For the Utes, Jon Owens and Mike Calvert each had three points to supplement Qualey’s banner day.
The stats were virtually identical as each team won 14-28 face-offs and had 60 groundballs. Utah did enjoy an advantage in shots, taking 49 to CSU’s 38. The Rams could only manage one shot in the third quarter while turning the ball over 8 times in a critical stretch that kept Utah in the game. The game actually went so long that the stats program could not calculate a fifth overtime and combined the fourth and fifth extra frames.
The loss marked CSU’s third consecutive overtime defeat going back to the MCLA semifinals in 2007. They also lost to Division III Colorado College by an identical 11-10 score in their first game of the year. It was also Utah’s second victory over Colorado State in series history, having defeated the Rams 5-4 in CSU’s 2003 national championship season.
CSU (8-3 overall, 0-1 RMLC) will need to regroup quickly with two more home games next weekend. The #25 Arizona Laxcats visit on Thursday while #6 Brigham Young will be in town on Saturday. The game against BYU will have extra significance given Utah’s 2-0 conference record. Utah (5-6 overall, 2-0 RMLC) visits Utah State next weekend before winding their season down with games against Utah Valley State, Lindenwood and BYU.
