DENVER, Colo. (November 4, 2018) – The University of Denver Pioneers Men’s Soccer Team got back into the win column just in time for the Summit League Tournament. Behind a hat-trick from Andre Shinyashiki, the Pioneers defeated the Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles 5-0 on Saturday night, on Senior Day no less.
Andre Shinyashiki Hat-Trick: Denver Pioneers down Oral Roberts ahead of Summit League Tournament
The Pioneers came into this game off just their third loss of the season, a 1-0 defeat at #6 Stanford. “It was a great way to honor our seniors,” Head Coach Jamie Franks said post-game. “The result at Stanford is unfortunate, it’s a slip. But we gained a lot of confidence from that game and we’ve changed somethings.”
This match was all Pioneers from the opening whistle. Just 15 minutes into the game, the home side were working the ball down the flank. Moshe Perez and Jacob Stensson combined well as Shinyashiki made a run to the near post and shot first time to score. In the 30th minute, Stensson found Kenny Akumatsu open at the top of the box. The Japan native scored to make it 2-0.
Before halftime, Perez found Shinyashiki again from a wide position. The forward made a cut around the keeper and scored to make it 3-0 at halftime.
Denver’s prettiest goal of the night came in the 60th minute. Shinyashiki had been moved to a wide role to start the half. He won the ball against the sideline, turned and passed to Akamatsu on the run. The attacker ran towards goal, drawing the last defender, then squared the ball to Eric Kronenberg, who tapped the ball into a wide open goal with goalkeeper Nicholas Mertzokat trying to cut down the angle on Akamatsu.
The game finished 5-0 with Shinyashiki getting his third of the game and 27th of the season in the 71st minute. Stensson recorded the assist, his third of the game.
Three takeaways:
Seniors finish strong: With the win last night, this senior class are three time Summit League champions. They are in position to win a third Summit League Tournament championship and could make it to a second College Cup. Other than Shinyashiki, every graduating senior finished the game on the field.
Shinyashiki aiming as high as possible: “The goal is to win a national championship,” the forward told Last Word on Soccer post-game. He expressed being happy for the team and the result more so than the hat-trick and the team is fully focused on the conference tournament next week ahead of a hopefully-deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
Panthers up next: The top four teams in the conference are headed to the Summit League tournament. DU will take on the Eastern Illinois Panthers on Thursday. The winner of that game will play in the final on Sunday against the winner of Nebraska Omaha vs. Purdue Fort Wayne.
