Mines freshman Dani Hering scores the decisive goal in a shootout against Metropolitan State College on Friday during an NCAA tournament game in Denver. (photo by Jonathan Ingraham/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

DENVER — In Friday's shootout, things started going poorly for the No.

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University of Denver goalkeeper Joe Willis made three saves during the shootout and all three Denver shooters scored as the Pioneers defeated Air Force in the quarterfinals of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament on Thursday night at the University of Denver Soccer Stadium.

Air Force (7-8-2) scored twice in the final 15 minutes of regulation to tie the Pioneers 2-2 and send the game into overtime.

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The Fort Lewis College women's soccer team hoists the RMAC tournament trophy. (photo by Jonathan Ingraham/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

DENVER — On Friday, after Fort Lewis College came from behind to win in the semifinals of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference women's soccer tournament, coach Damian Clark said his team is accustomed to playing with poise, even when trailing.

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Fort Lewis defender Laurel Reinhardt cleans up the mess after Kayla Mitchell, right, got the ball behind FLC goalkeeper Christine Schmelzle. (photo by Tom Auclair/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

DENVER — Hayley Hollenga scored two goals, including the game winner with a little more than 6 minutes to play, as the Fort Lewis College women's soccer team knocked off the Colorado School of Mines 3-2 on Friday at Auraria Field in the semifinals of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference tournament.

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Seattle's Kasey Keller is a finalist for numerous Major League Soccer awards, including goalkeeper of the year. (photo by Jonathan Ingraham/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

Major League Soccer released the finalists for the league's 2009 awards today. The winners will be announced starting Wednesday and ending Nov.

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Aleah DeGeneres scored on a cross from Madison McQuilliams in the 103rd minute to give No. 20 Metro State a 3-2 victory over No. 11 Fort Lewis on Friday afternoon at Auraria Field. It was the first loss of the season for Fort Lewis and marked the first time the Skyhawks had allowed a goal in 2009.

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Rapids defender Ugo Ihemelu, one of the fastest players in Major League Soccer, throws the ball in during a scrimmage last month against the Colorado School of Mines. (photo by George Tanner/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

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The Colorado Rapids have traded defender Ugo Ihemelu to Dallas for Drew Moor, the club announced Monday.

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On Sunday, the Buffs came to play.Â

After giving up two goals against the run of play in a 2-1 loss to Illinois on Friday, the University of Colorado soccer team pummeled St. Mary's 8-1 on Sunday afternoon at an invitational tournament hosted by the University of Denver.

And the turnaround from Friday was almost instant.

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University of Denver freshman Nathan Sackeyfio tries to strip the ball from Stanford's T.J. Novak on Saturday at the practice fields at Dick's Sporting Goods Park. The Pioneers won the exhibition 3-0. (photo by Tom Auclair/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

Stanford University is one of the finest academic institutions in the world.

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St. Mary's defender Erin Kearney tries to strip the ball from University of Denver senior Kelli Breidenbach on Friday night at DU's new soccer stadium. (photo by Tom Auclair/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

It was the first time that the University of Denver women's soccer team played on the turf of their new stadium.

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Random thoughts and ideas from the Colorado Rapids' shameful 3-2 loss against the Fire on Sunday evening in Chicago.

OMAR'S FIRST GOAL: Two things went right on Omar Cummings' goal in the first five minutes of the second half. First, Jamie Smith's shot was difficult enough that Chicago goalkeeper Jon Busch couldn't handle it cleanly.

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The University of Denver men's soccer team was ranked No. 25 in the nation in the TopDrawerSoccer.com preseason ranking.

The Web site ranks the top 48 teams in NCAA Division I men's soccer. Akron, St. John's, Creighton, California and Maryland made up the top five.

The Pioneers will face a host of ranked teams this season: No.

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Colorado Rapids midfielder Colin Clark has torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, the club announced Tuesday.

Clark suffered the injury in training Tuesday and will miss the remainder of the 2009 season.

Surgery to repair the injury is scheduled for next week.

Clark started in 16 games this season, playing 1,421 minutes.

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From left: Sally Cole, Brittney Macdonald, Iris Mora, Kay Hawke and Jenae Gibbons.Â
(photos by Tom Auclair, Zane Tanner, George Tanner/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

I enjoyed the 2009 W-League season so much that I decided to put together an all-conference team based on the games we covered at ColoradoSoccerNow.

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Rapids striker Omar Cummings kept Columbus defender Chad Marshall, right, off balance throughout Saturday's game — but couldn't find a goal for Colorado. (photo by Jonathan Ingraham/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

Call it yellow-and-black magic.

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Random thoughts and ideas from the 2009 MLS All-Star Game, which finished tied 1-1. Everton defeated the All-Stars on penalty kicks, as goalkeeper Tim Howard rose to the occasion. Everton won the PK stage 4-3 in six rounds, as Howard made three saves.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Howard.

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Jestina Orlando, right, and Lisa Kosena vie for a header on June 21 against the L.A. Legends. (photo by George Tanner/ ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

With its eyes on a playoff spot, the Colorado Force kicks off a three-game Southern California road trip tonight against league-leading Pali Blues.

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Here are my votes in the media balloting for the 2009 Major League Soccer All-Star team:

GOALKEEPER (1)
Kasey Keller, Seattle Sounders: Although he doesn't have the best stats in the league, he's having the best year.

DEFENDERS (3)
Chad Marshall, Columbus Crew: Scores goals, shuts down opponents, plays clean.

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Chicago's Wilman Conde, left, heads in the winning goal over the head of Rapids defender Kosuke Kimura and beyond the reach of goalkeeper Matt Pickens.
(photo by Jonathan Ingraham/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

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The game was a dud, and so were the fireworks.

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Force midfielder Sara Campbell controls the ball as Los Angeles defender Jenae Gibbons closes in on Sunday in Loveland. (photo by Tom Auclair/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

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Finally, a victory.

The Colorado Force had played five matches, all in this state, but had not won a game .

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Lisa Kosena, right, and Natalie Martineau go shoulder to shoulder for possession of the ball in the first half Wednesday in Loveland. (photo by Tom Auclair/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

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Nikki Marshall scored a first-half goal as the Colorado Force tied its fourth consecutive game, a 1-1 draw against Ventura County on Wednesday at the Loveland Sports Park.

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The Colorado Force will attempt to win its first game of the season tonight as Brazilians Fabiane Nascimento and Paula Pires and the rest of the Ventura County Fusion visits the Loveland Sports Park.

Pires played for Brazil's U-20 national team in the U-20 World Cup last fall, a tournament that also featured Force midfielder Nikki Marshall.

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The Colorado Force was missing some heavy hitters Sunday against the defending W-League champions.

Central defender Carly Peetz was invited to train with the U.S. U-23 national team.

Shay Powell hurt her left knee last week in a 2-2 tie with the Real Colorado Cougars; she wanted to play in Sunday's matinee against the Pali Blues, but the Force kept her out of the game as a precaution.

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Real Colorado midfielder Taryn Hemmings heads toward the goal in the first half on Friday at Shea Stadium in Highlands Ranch. (photo by George Tanner/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

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Despite a flurry of scoring chances by Becca Mays in the second half, the Pali Blues made a first-half goal stand up for a 1-0 victory on Friday night over the Real Colorado Cougars at Shea Stadium in Highlands Ranch.

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The defending W-League champion, the Pali Blues from Pacific Palisades, Calif., come to Colorado for two matches, starting tonight.

The Blues play at 6:30 p.m. today against the Real Colorado Cougars, and they travel to Loveland to play the Colorado Force at 1 p.m. Sunday. The Sunday match is the Force's only afternoon match at the Loveland Sports Park this season.

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Second-half substitute Brianne Pugh sprints into the Colorado Force's penalty box on Sunday in Highlands Ranch. (photo by Tom Auclair/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

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It looked more like a hockey goal than a soccer goal.

After a corner kick by Colorado Force midfielder Cayla Deacon, Emily Pfankuch poked home a loose ball in the goal mouth in the 66th minute of a 2-2 tie with the Real Colorado Cougars on Sunday afternoon in Highlands Ranch.

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Omar Cummings scored in the 88th minute to rescue the Rapids in a 1-1 tie Saturday night in Sandy, Utah, in a match in which Colorado was severely outplayed in the first half.

Crossing the midfield stripe, Mehdi Ballouchy saw Cummings straight ahead with his back to goal. He put the ball right on Cummings' feet just shy of the RSL penalty area.

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Conor Casey and the Colorado Rapids were stymied repeatedly by the goalkeeping of Seattle's Kasey Keller. (photo by Jonathan Ingraham/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)

Had the Colorado Rapids known before Saturday's match that they'd score two goals against Seattle keeper Kasey Keller, they might've been ecstatic.

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Despite scoring in the third minute, putting eight shots on goal and taking 10 corner kicks, the Colorado Rapids were held to a tie by the injury-riddled New England Revolution on Saturday at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Mass.

Steve Ralston's penalty kick 18 minutes into the game was enough for the Revs to salvage a tie.

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Argentine Diego Milito could easily become one of the major stars in the next transfer window. Inter were willing to bring him in January, but Genoa who are fighting for Champions League entry didn't even want to talk about it. He is the idol in Genoa, fans worship him, couple of years ago he earned [. Click to continue reading...

Doncaster Rovers' manager Sean O'Driscoll, has criticized the style of most of the teams in Coca Cola Championship explaining it as too much "functional", that is, saying it is only based on the result. Anyway, during his working days, this former Bournemouth manager and a very peaceful and quiet person (his ironic nickname is "Noisy") [. Click to continue reading...

Doncaster Rovers' manager Sean O'Driscoll, has criticized the style of most of the teams in Coca Cola Championship explaining it as too much "functional", that is, saying it is only based on the result. Anyway, during his working days, this former Bournemouth manager and a very peaceful and quiet person (his ironic nickname is "Noisy") [. Click to continue reading...

This boy is really crazy! I know a hundred of players that would kill only to visit Inter training grounds and facilities, let least to have the privilege of training, playing and living with the statures such as Ibrahimovic, Zanetti, Cordoba and others. Still, Adriano, just seems to have a problem appreciating the one in [. Click to continue reading...

This boy is really crazy! I know a hundred of players that would kill only to visit Inter training grounds and facilities, let least to have the privilege of training, playing and living with the statures such as Ibrahimovic, Zanetti, Cordoba and others. Still, Adriano, just seems to have a problem appreciating the one in [. Click to continue reading...

He is strong on the pitch, always determined to do the uttermost to help his team win each game, and his creativity always puts his side's performances on a higher plane. However, it seems his courage and stamina fade away outside the stadium. Bastian Schweinsteiger, four times a Bundesliga champion is a fantastic player whose brilliance [. Click to continue reading...