VIDEO: Hudson, Sparks, Johnson after M-soccer tops Denver

[PonyPride]

VIDEO: SMU men’s soccer head coach Kevin Hudson, midfielder Bailey Sparks and goalkeeper Cole Johnson met the media after the Mustangs knocked off Denver, 2-1, in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Mustangs advance to the round of 16, in which they will host Oregon State at 7 p.m. Saturday at Washburne Soccer & Track Stadium.





From SMUMustangs.com:

DALLAS (SMU) — No. 6 seed SMU's advanced to the NCAA Round of 16 with a 2-1 win over Denver, at Washburne Stadium on Sunday.

The Mustangs are coming off of winning the American Athletic Conference regular-season title. This is SMU's 35th NCAA Tournament appearance, and will be the Mustangs' fourth time to the Sweet 16 under head coach Kevin Hudson.

"The guys relish playing in front of the home crowd and being here," Hudson said. "You know the surface, you know the comforts of home. We love being here, the crowd was great."

The first goal of the night came from AAC Midfielder of the Year Bailey Sparks in the 23rd minute. Sparks headed the ball off an assist from Mads Westergren, the AAC Defender of the Year.

Before the end of the first half, the Mustangs notched another from Jose Ortiz — his fourth goal of the season. In the 20th minute, he shot the ball into the bottom left corner for an unassisted goal.

AAC Goalkeeper of the Year Cole Johnson started and played the full 90 minutes in goal. The senior recorded one save.

The only time a ball slipped past Johnson's goal line was off of a penalty kick from Denver's Sam Bassett (12-3-5 ) with 22 minutes remaining.

In the final rankings for the regular season, the Mustangs (14-2-2) were ranked as high as No. 1 by Top Drawer Soccer, along with a No. 2 ranking from United Soccer Coaches. SMU was also ranked No. 3 by College Soccer News and fourth in NCAA RPI.

The last time the Mustangs reached the round of 16 was in 2019, when SMU defeated No. 8 UCF 2-1.

Hudson now has six NCAA Tournament appearances under his belt and a current record of 103-40-17. The former SMU soccer player recorded his 100th win recently in a 1-0 win over UAB on Oct. 27 — the game which clinched his fourth AAC Championship.

SMU moves on to host unseeded Oregon State (9-5-5) on Saturday, Nov. 25 at 7 p.m. in the third round of the NCAA tournament.