BILLINGS, Mont. – Emerging with a 1-0 victory on Thursday afternoon at Yellowjacket Field, visiting Colorado State University-Pueblo used a second-half finish to top the Montana State University Billings men's soccer team in its 2022 regular-season opener at the 7th annual Rimrock Classic in memory of Trevor Wildberger.
 
Reggie Nicolas netted the game's lone goal in the 65th minute, but the Thunderwolves had the majority of the chances out-shooting the Yellowjackets 15-2 in the match. Jeremi Campagnolo made eight saves in his Yellowjacket debut to keep his team in the match, and MSUB's starting back line of Guillermo Gonzalez, Matthew Wilkinson, Pascal Pisarek, and Bryan Maxwell all played the full 90 minutes.
 
"I was proud of the boys' effort today against a very good CSU-Pueblo side," said MSUB head coach Aaron Champenoy, after his first match in charge of the program. "We had times where we lost focus and allowed them to get a few good looks, but we battled through it."
 
MSUB's best look of the first half came in the 24th minute, when Jack Jarrett found himself with room inside the box on the right side. CSUP goalkeeper Nils Roth handled the shot however – his first of two saves en route to the shutout between the posts.
 
Aden O'Hara had the first two on-target looks for the Thunderwolves, forcing Campagnolo into action with a sliding stop on a low shot followed by a well-timed tip save on a soft strike that was headed just under the crossbar. CSUP continued knocking on the door throughout the first half, with Campagnolo finishing the first 45 minutes having made six saves.
 
The Thunderwolves broke through midway through the second half, when Gabriel Campora fed a well-timed pass beyond the Yellowjacket back line. Nicolas worked between two defenders, and despite Campagnolo getting his hands on the shot it carried enough momentum to roll across the goal line to make the score 1-0.
 
Pisarek had a crucial intervention in a one-on-one situation with 14 minutes left, winning a challenge against Noe Pena on a counterattack coming off a corner kick. Pisarek was the last defender, and prevented what would have been a prime chance for the Thunderwolves to double their lead.
 
Campagnolo made a final save in the waning minutes, but the Yellowjackets could not formulate an equalizing chance as time ran out. "We will have to do a better job of keeping possession moving forward, and I think we will be able to do that," Champenoy said. "We were a bit unlucky not to earn a penalty towards the end, but that's how the game goes sometimes. We will move on to the next one."
 
THE BUZZ: Pisarek was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is now 0-8-1 all-time against CSU-Pueblo and is 0-2 in home matches…Callum Bryan, Bjarne Fedkenhauer, Viggo Rogstrom, Roddy Lewis, and Taylor Moore each also made their official Yellowjacket debut in Thursday's game.
 
NEXT UP: The Yellowjackets square off against UC Colorado Springs on Saturday afternoon with a 3:30 p.m. kickoff scheduled at Yellowjacket Field. Live coverage for Saturday's game will be available online here.