INDIANAPOLIS - As they've done numerous times already this season, the IUPUI men's soccer team went toe-to-toe with one of the nation's elite teams, only to fall short of the mark. On Friday night (Oct. 7), it was No. 7 Denver that picked off the Jaguars, 1-0 in a slugfest at the on-campus Michael A. Carroll Stadium.

"We continue to talk to our student-athletes about consistently competing from the opening whistle to the final whistle," Head Coach Brian Barnett said. "There's no question that over the course of the night we did that. Our guys competed and scrapped for everything they got out there. 

"They gave it their all and unfortunately we were unable to generate that one or two goal scoring opportunities that would put it in the back of the net. They're a quality opponent. They defended well and we were unable to match that side of it."

The match more closely resembled rugby or WWE wrestling as the sides combined on 30 whistles and six cards. However, the visiting Pioneers claimed the edge in the scoring column on AJ Fuller's strike in the game's 29th minute.

IUPUI (1-10, 0-3 Summit) had an immediate scoring chance against a Denver defense that concedes a goal roughly once every other match. However, Pedro Valladao had his shot from in close knocked down by a defender. 

Seemingly shocked by the Jags' initial burst, Denver tipped the field for the bulk of the first half before breaking through in the 29th minute. Sam Hamilton played a big ball across the field to Fuller, who settled on the left side before unloading a shot inside the left post for his first score of the season. Denver (10-0-2, 3-0 Summit) continued to attack, but had to settle for a 1-0 lead at the break. 

The second half saw sophomore goalie Josh Gray make two brilliant stops in the stanza's early going before the Jags' best scoring chance of the night came in the 52nd minute. 

Senior Cristian Soto and junior Uriel Macias played a nice exchange in the middle of the field before Macias unloaded a howitzer just over the bar. 

IUPUI's final scoring chance of the night led to some fireworks in the game's closing minutes. Just moments after Nick Anderson was issued a yellow card for a hard challenge from behind, Soto got loose on a counter up the near side of the field. 

With Macias running clean through the middle, Soto was pulled down from behind by Denver defender Kortne Ford, stopping the breakaway. Soto immediately jumped to his feet to retaliate and was subsequently issued a red card for his second infraction of the night. Ford was shown a yellow for his action, but the Jags were unable to capitalize on the restart deep in Denver territory. 

Denver finished with an 18-4 shot advantage and a clear 10-0 margin in corner kicks. Macias was the only IUPUI player with multiple shot attempts while Andre Shinyashiki led Denver with four tries off the bench. 

Gray had one of his best outings of the season with seven saves. 

IUPUI will return to action on Wednesday, Oct. 12 when the Jaguars host Cincinnati at 7:00 p.m. at Carroll Stadium. That match will be streamed live on IUPUI LIVE! on IUPUIJags.com, beginning at kickoff.