BILLINGS, Mont. – For the first time in program history, the No. 15-ranked Corban University men's soccer team can now say it has officially defeated Rocky Mountain College (Mont.), downing the No. 11-ranked Battlin' Bears in an NAIA top-25 matchup on Friday, 2-0. The win helps Corban keep pace with Southern Oregon University, which also won today atop the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) standings.

"Our team put together a very professional performance today," said Corban head coach Aaron Lewis. "We received some big plays from guys when we really needed them. As much as we recognize this was a big match, we also know that we have work left to do on this trip to accomplish the goals we have set for ourselves."

Last year, Corban advanced in the CCC Tournament via a penalty-kick shootout win over Rocky Mountain, but that match was officially listed as a tie, meaning that Friday's result did mark Corban's first-ever win over its CCC rival.

After a back-and-forth first 28 minutes of the match, Kohl Hurtado got in behind the Rocky Mountain defense, and after touching the ball past the goalkeeper, he buried his shot into the back of the net to make it 1-0.

In the second half, the Battlin' Bears pressed in search of the equalizer, but Corban's Jordan Salim was outstanding between the pipes, making four key saves to stonewall the Rocky Mountain attack. In all, Salim finished the match with six saves.

Then in the 76^th minute of play, Travez Whyte came in off the bench and provided just the kind of spark Corban needed, slipping a pass through to Levan Zhividze, and after Zhividze took a nifty touch past the defender, he blasted home a shot into the right-side netting, doubling Corban's advantage.

From that point on, Corban's defense stood strong and preserved the shutout, resulting in the two-goal triumph over Rocky Mountain (10-3, 6-2 CCC).

The Warriors (10-1-1, 7-0-1 CCC) return to the pitch on Sunday when they travel west to take on College of Idaho. Kickoff in Caldwell is slated for 2:30 p.m. MT.