Kyle McGowan is on a serious heater.

It could carry Denver soccer deep into the NCAA Tournament.

Denver beat UC Irvine 2-0 in the first round of the tournament at University of Denver Soccer Stadium on Thursday. It was a goal from McGowan midway through the second half that provided the winning score. McGowan, a redshirt junior forward, was named Summit League Offensive Player of the Year and now has six goals in his last six games.

Luke Schulz, a sophomore from Arvada West, scored a comfort goal a few minutes later. 

Denver (12-7-2) will play at No. 8 Portland (13-1-3) in the second round at 6 p.m. Sunday (ESPN+). The Pilots earned an automatic bid into the bracket by virtue of their WCC title. Their only loss was an Oct. 25 defeat at Santa Clara, 1-0.

The Pios will be making their eighth appearance in the second round of the tournament. Coach Jamie Franks bumped his NCAA Tournament record as a head coach to 10-8-2.

McGowan’s run over the past month is worth noting, especially with Portland next on the schedule. He’s a Portland native and scored two goals last week in the Summit League title game prior to his key goal Thursday. He also had two goals against Omaha on Oct. 25. 

Denver goalkeeper and Colorado Springs native Isaac Nehme made a critical save with 5 minutes left in regulation and finished with two saves. Thursday’s was the fifth shutout of his NCAA Tournament career.