Release by Laura Johnson, Sports Information Intern
ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s soccer team travels to Arden Hills, Minn. Saturday to face the Bethel Royals for its eighth Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game of the season. The Gusties enter tomorrow’s 3:30 p.m. match 4-8-1 overall and 3-3-1 in the MIAC, while the Royals are 8-5-1 overall and 2-3-1 in MIAC play. Gustavus is currently tied in the MIAC standings with Saint John’s for third, while Bethel and Augsburg are tied for eighth.
Live coverage of tomorrow’s match begins at 3:30 p.m.
The Gusties’ three game-winning streak was terminated after they fell 1-0 to Saint John’s on Wednesday. The Gusties were forced to play with a disadvantage for a majority of the match as they were flagged for a red card in the 19th minute. The foul occurred in the box as Saint John’s was attempting to break away for a goal. The Johnnies received a penalty kick as a result and took advantage with what proved to be the game-winning goal. After Matt Bateman’s eighth start and making four saves against Saint John’s, he ranks fourth in the MIAC with 43 saves. Bateman has a 3-3 record in net with a 1.17 goals against average and .827 save percentage.
The Royals are coming off a 3-2 victory over the UM-Morris Cougars. The game-winning goal came off a penalty kick with 11 seconds left by Curt Levalley. The other two goals were scored by freshman forward Brandon Martinez-Luhman and sophomore midfielder Keagan Heckmann. After 14 games this season, Josh del la Rosa is the team’s leading scorer with five goals and three assists for 13 points. Sam Asfahl has started 6 games in goal with a 1.23 goals against average, .833 save percentage, and a 5-1 record. The Royals other keeper, Jakob Bartels, has started eight games this season with a 1.79 goals against average, .731 save percentage, and a 3-4-1 record.