(Tucson, AZ) The Pima Community College men’s soccer team’s season come to an end on Thursday in the NJCAA Division II Tournament semifinal round.
The No. 7 seeded Aztecs fell to No. 1 Phoenix College 1-0. Pima lost to the Bears in three of the four meetings this season. So far, the Bears’ (20-1-1) only loss has come at the hands of Pima. Phoenix College will advance to the National Championship game on Saturday.
Landon Vree scored the eventual game-winner for the Bears as he hit his shot in front of the net in the 26thminute.
The game was delayed for over an hour due to a lightning storm with 4:34 left in the first half.
The Aztecs outshot the Bears 12-8 and 4-3 in shots on goal. Pima also had seven corner kicks but couldn’t get one in the back of the net.
“I don’t feel like we went toe-to-toe, I felt like we were better. In the three games we lost to them (Phoenix College), that’s the most dominant performance we had against them,” Pima head coach David Cosgrove said. “Sometimes in this game, it doesn’t go your way. From an effort and a regret standpoint, I have zero complaints.”
Freshman Tommaso Leonardi finished the game with two saves.
“Phoenix College has been and is the No. 1 team in the country for a reason. I really respect their kids, and they handle themselves in the right way,” Cosgrove said. “Some of their kids made some big plays and their coaches do a really good job. They’re difficult to play but I thought we played great. We made a couple mistakes at one time and with Phoenix, the quality they have, they punished us.
“I thought for the most part, we were in charge of the game. It was being played the way we wanted to. We created some chances that we could have done better with. Their kids made great plays clearing balls off the line. We did everything we could to possibly score a goal and equal that game. At the end of the day, we couldn’t.”
The Aztecs close out the 2025 season at 18-4 overall. They went undefeated at the West Campus Aztec Field for the second straight year at 9-0 (21-0 in the last two years at Aztec Field).
These guys have been awesome,” Cosgrove said. “I’ve been real impressed with them as players and as men this year.”
The Aztecs outscored their opponents in Pool B play 5-0 at the tournament with wins over St. Clair County Community College and Iowa Lakes Community College.
This was Pima’s seventh appearance in the national semifinal round in the last 11 years. This was their ninth straight appearance in the NJCAA National Tournament.
Press Release courtesy of Pima Aztec Athletics – Raymond Suarez
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