GLENDALE, Ariz. – The No. 20 Glendale Community College men's soccer team roared back from a sluggish start, scoring three times in the last 21 minutes of the match to claim a 3-1 win over Mesa Community College on Monday night in the regular-season finale. The Gauchos head into the postseason with a record of 9-3-2 on the year.

The first half featured plenty of half-chances for Glendale, but nothing that proved to be much trouble for Mesa keeper Cole Kasting. Kasting made six saves in the first 45 minutes and down on the other end the Thunderbirds were able to find the back of the net in the 22nd minute as Brody Donovan hit a low shot through a crowd past Gavin Smith following a knockdown in the box from a free kick. That moment was enough to stake Mesa to a 1-0 halftime lead.

The second half was much improved for Glendale, but the Gauchos still faced a 1-0 deficit at the water break at the midway point of the half. A pair of Glendale reserves combined for the tying goal shortly after play resumed, with Dezmon Valdivia sprinting loose down the left wing before finding Alexis Segura for a finish at a tight angle from the right side of the box to knot the score at 1-1.

The Gauchos controlled the action from there and were rewarded with a pair of penalties in the dying minutes of the contest. Owen Collins converted the first penalty kick in the 79th minute to put Glendale out in front and Daniel Hernandez Vega put the match away with another penalty kick in the 88th minute to make it 3-1.

After allowing 10 shot attempts to the Thunderbirds in the first half, the Glendale defense went into lockdown mode and Mesa did not attempt a single shot after halftime. Nathan Johansen and Jordan Yesenski each had three shot attempts for the Gauchos, while Smith made five saves on the night and earned the win between the sticks.

Glendale goes into the Region I Division II semifinals as the No. 3 seed and will face No. 2 seed Pima Community College on Oct. 31 in Tucson beginning at 6 p.m.