The Gustavus men’s soccer team hosted UW-Whitewater in a second round match of the NCAA tournament on Saturday afternoon in St. Peter, Minn. The Gusties and Warhawks were tied at 1-1 at the end of regulation and neither team was able to score in either of the two sudden death overtime periods. The game went to a shootout with both teams converting their first four penalty kicks. After Whitewater’s fifth kick hit the left post, junior midfielder Jonathan Astry stepped into the box and sent the ball into the back of the net to send the Gusties into the sectional semifinal of the NCAA Tournament.
In the first minute of play, Gustavus scored off of a corner kick, however the goal was disallowed when the referee called junior Bobby Kroog with a push in the box. The Warhawks scored in the 20th minute against the run of play to take a 1-0 lead. Nate Haas crossed the ball to Bob Moelter who hit the ball one time into the back of the net. It was only the third goal allowed by Gustavus this season and the first in approximately 582 minutes of play. The Gusties enjoyed the majority of the possession in the first half outshooting the Warhawks 9-3 and held a 6-0 corner kick advantage, but were unable to tie the match.
The Gusties put a considerable amount of pressure on the Warhawks in the second half creating several chances to score. The Gusties equalized in the 82nd minute with a goal from junior Jordan Iblings. Gustavus was awarded a free kick 25-yards out and senior Joe Hartwell hammered the shot past the wall and the Warhawk goalkeeper was not able to hang onto the the shot. Several players converged on the loose ball and Iblings was able to put the ball into the back of the net from inside the six yard box.
With just a couple minutes left to play, the Gusties thought they would be awarded a penalty kick when freshman Ben Heupel seemed to be brought down inside the penalty box. However, the referee felt that Heupel took a dive and awarded a free kick to Whitewater. The game remained tied at 1-1 at the end of regulation so the game went to overtime. Gustavus outshot Whitewater 15-5 and held a 9-0 corner kick advantage after 90 minutes of play.
Neither team was able to score in the two 10 minute sudden death overtime periods so the game went to a shootout. The first four shooters converted for each team and the fifth shooter for the Warhawks had his shot hit off the outside left post. Junior midfielder Jonathan Astry stepped up to the penalty spot and sent the ball into the back of the net to send the Gusties into the sectional semifinal of the NCAA Tournament.
The Gusties improved their overall record to 17-1-3, while the Warhawks ended their season at 13-7-1. Gustavus will play the winner of the Trinity (Texas) and Texas-Dallas match taking place on Saturday night. The site will be announced on Sunday, November 14 and sectionals will take place November 19-20 or November 20-21.