GREAT FALLS, Mont. – Argo soccer saved its best for the postseason, avenging a 4-2 regular season loss, and upsetting no. 3 seed Evergreen State College 2-0 in the first round of the Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament. UGF entered as the tournament's no. 6 seed and will move on to face the no. 1 seed Rocky Mountain College in the semifinals.
 
UGF entered the game confidently, with the team believing that it by correcting a few key errors it could earn a much different result against the Geoducks than the 4-2 loss during the regular season. The 4 goals in that game were the most the team had given up in a single contest all season and in the first half, the Argo back line looked to prove that was a fluke.
 
"We felt like we played well that first time against them. We just made some silly mistakes that game them easy chances," UGF Head Coach Joseph Yeisley said about that regular season loss. "We really minimized our mistakes today and that paid dividends for us."
 
The starting point was the same as before, solid possession that kept the ball largely on the Geoduck's side of the field and away from the Argo net. A successful execution of that strategy in the first half led to 10 shots from UGF in the first 45 minutes, including 4 shots on goal, as opposed to TESC's 3 total shots and 1 shot on goal.
 
While none of UGF's shots in the first period made it into the net, the Argo back line was consistent and mistake free, seamlessly adjusting to the addition of junior center back Rasmus Madsen who returned from an injury to play in his first game since September 23.
 
The lack of scoring quickly changed as the second half begun, with junior Christoffer Bisbo teaming up with sophomore Adrian Gomez, and George Holloway to score the first goal of the game in the 48th minute. The Danish forward worked on a series of passes with the two underclassmen to break free inside the 6-yard box to score his 4th goal of the season and put his team up 1-0.
 
"I was extremely impressed and proud of Bisbo's effort today," Yeisley said. "He has been battling some back issues the last week or so and was limited on minutes today, but he played his heart out in those minutes and he deserved to score that goal."
 
Defense ruled the pace of play for the next 35 minutes, with each team only getting off a few shots, none of which found their way on frame. Just as time got desperate for TESC, Argo senior Ian Ooko sent a cross to the top of Evergreen's penalty box and found freshman midfielder Alex Williams who took a strike that put the game away. His goal in the 83rd minutes was the first of his collegiate career and made the final 7 minutes comfortable for UGF fans.
 
Although the victory is sweet for the Argos, the celebration won't last long with a 24-hour turnaround before facing the tournament's top seed, Rocky Mountain College at 8 p.m. on November 5 in the semifinals.
 
The two teams have developed quite a history, with the upcoming semifinal match marking the 5th time the teams have played over the past two season. The most memorable of those 5 was last year's 2015 Cascade Collegiate Conference Finals, which Rocky won 1-0. UGF got some revenge this regular season, handing the Battlin' Bears its only conference loss, a 4-0 drubbing in Billings, Mont.
 
"The guys really stepped up and executed the game plan well today. I was proud of their attention to detail," Yeisley said. "We will need that same mindset and focus heading into the biggest match of the year against Rocky."