UNLV's Marco Gonzalez was the hero of the afternoon, bringing the Rebels back from a one-goal deficit with a pair of late goals game for a 2-1 victory over third-place Utah Valley in WAC men's soccer action Sunday at Peter Johann Memorial Field. The victory clinched a spot in the WAC postseason tournament for the Rebels, who improved to 10-8-1 overall, and 5-4-1 in league play. The Wolverines meanwhile dripped to 9-8, 6-4 in the conference. 

It was a defensive battle for the entire game, as though both teams finished with double-digits in shots attempted, there were only a total of seven shots on goal through 101 minutes of action. Two of those were from the Wolverines, as UNLV was only required to make one save, though one shot found its way past the Rebel defense in the 70th minute that gave Utah Valley a 1-0 advantage.

THE TURNING POINT: The Rebels, who outshot Utah Valley 7-5 in the second half, cashed in on one attempt in the 79th minute when John Lynam collected the ball in the box off a long pass from the backfield. With the UVU goalie out of position, Lynam sent the ball back to Gonzalez in the center of the box, and he quickly placed a shot to the back of the goal to tie the game in the 79th minute.

REBEL OF THE GAME: Gonzalez added to his season goal total in the 102nd minute when he converted a penalty kick for the golden goal to give the win to the Rebels. Jesus Partida drew the PK when he was dragged down in the box on the right side on a drive to the goal.

QUOTABLE: "We've been waiting for awhile for Marco to get back in scoring, and today was a great day for him to get both goals for it. I think it was just a case of being in the right place at the right time. Great great win for us today."
- Head coach Rich Ryerson

REBEL NOTES: 
* UNLV will play in the WAC Tournament for the sixth straight season after clinching a top-seven finish with Sunday's victory.
* The Rebels have reached 10 victories for the fifth straight season, which ties a school record.
* UNLV is one of just six teams in the nation that have posted five straight 10+ win seasons (as of games played through Oct. 28).
* The Rebels posted their first golden goal since Nov. 5, 2017, a 2-1 double-overtime victory against No. 22 Seattle in Las Vegas.
* Thanks to his two-goal performance, Gonzalez moved into fifth in the WAC in both total goals (nine) and total points (21).

NEXT FOR THE REBELS: UNLV closes out the regular season and a three-game homestand when it hosts Grand Canyon Friday on Senior Night in a 7 pm contest at Peter Johann Memorial Field. The game will be streamed live on the WAC Digital Network, available on UNLVRebels.com as well as through the Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV and Android streaming devices.