Denver -- Despite generating eight shots while adding a score, Dominican men's soccer could not overcome their deficit in its non-conference matchup with MSU Denver on Thursday, as the Roadrunners pulled away for a 3-1 victory.

The Penguins (1-2) spread the attack early with four different shot-takers in the opening half, but MSU Denver goalkeeper Nick McNeil denied both Cole Porter and Abraham Garcia. Just 30 seconds after Dallas Baer opened the scoring for the Roadrunners (1-0-2), Rolando Gonzalez nearly equalized, only to see his strike deflect off the left post. MSU Denver extended its lead before halftime when John Lucio finished to make it 2-0 in the 32nd minute, and Dominican's Jake Kazlauskas narrowly missed moments later just off-target.

Both teams came out firing after the break, with Dominican goalkeeper Colin Nestor producing two quick saves to keep his side within striking distance. That resilience set up a breakthrough minutes later, when Dimani Mathlin buried a shot into the upper-left corner to cut the deficit to 2-1.

Dominican continued to battle defensively for nearly 30 minutes, but the Roadrunners restored their cushion in the 81st minute as Adan Perez struck to seal the 3-1 result.

Six different Penguins registered shots in the match, including two apiece from Gonzalez and Ricky Maldonado, with both of the latter's attempts on target. Mathlin became Dominican's fourth goal scorer of the season, while Nestor added four saves to his early-season tally.

The Penguins return to action on Saturday, Sept. 13, with a noon MDT (11 a.m. PST) kickoff at Colorado State University Pueblo.