Fort Lewis College was victimized by Colorado Mines’ All-American.
Tesho Akindele, the reigning South Central Region and Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Player of the Year, scored a hat trick in the 16th-ranked Orediggers’ 5-2 victory over the Skyhawks’ men’s soccer side.
Joe Haines scored 22 seconds into the match, then Akindele scored his first in the 16th minute for a 2-0 lead.
Tamino Kroeger cut the Orediggers’ lead in half in the 24th minute, assisted by Austin Derksen.
But Seun Ogunmodede scored his first goal of the season to restore the Orediggers’ two-goal lead in the first half.
Akindele put the game out of the reach with back-to-back goals to open the second half, one in the 56th minute and one in the 63rd minute. The hat trick was Akindele’s ninth, 10th and 11th goals this season, half of what he finished with last season, which ranked second in NCAA Division II.
Jordan Alexander, again assisted by Derksen, scored for the Skyhawks in the 86th minute.
FLC (6-5-1, 3-5-0 RMAC), losers of five of its last seven, will play Friday at CSU-Pueblo before returning home for a four-game homestand against Regis, Colorado Mesa, Metro State and Colorado Mines (8-2-1, 6-2-0 RMAC) at Dirks Field.
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