Men's soccer in NAC title game - Live stats, video available
| Published: 11/04/2011 |
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MSOE Raiders face Dominican Stars in the 2011 Northern Athletics Conference Men’s Soccer Championship, Saturday at 1 p.m.
As it did two years ago and for that matter every year since the beginning of the Northern Athletics Conference in 2006, the road to the NCAA tournament goes through River Forest, Ill. On Saturday, November 5, 2011, the MSOE Raiders men’s soccer team returns to Dominican University to take on the Stars. The game is slated for a 1 p.m. start.
This isn’t the first time the Raiders have had to face the Stars on their home turf for a conference title. The men’s soccer program was there two years ago playing for the NAC title and the automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA Division III national tournament. In the NAC title game, the Raiders fell 1-0 to Dominican in a low scoring affair. Dominican, currently ranked eighth in the nation and the top team in the Central region, is used to hosting conference tournaments as they have been the number one seed all six years of the conferences existence. In fact, Dominican has never lost a conference, let alone a championship game.
Although the opponent seems formidable, they are not unstoppable. Against five NAC opponents in 2011, Dominican has won only by one goal and three of them went into overtime (Concordia-Wisconsin, Lakeland and MSOE). The longest game on the season for Dominican was a 2-1 double-overtime nail biter in which MSOE lost in the 101st minute of play. The Raiders led the Stars 1-0 in the first half , outshooting them 5-to-4. Dominican tied it up in the 75th minute, off an Edwin Rodriguez shot. In the second overtime, the Stars' Leo Elizade scored off a slow bicycle kick in the box for the last minute victory.
The Raiders are led by Dan Hosko, who leads the NAC in total points (31), assists (9) and is tied for the lead in goals (11). Also expect teammates Michael Vanek, Drew Porter and Patrick Gathof to play significant roles for MSOE. The Raiders will have to control Dominican’s Rodriguez, Ryan Ybarra, Lio Tovar and Logan Marvin to have a chance at winning the championship. The three combined for a total of 24 of the Stars 38 conference goals. Sophomore goalkeeper Dan Cimicata has given up four goals on the season for a .038 goals against average in conference play.
The game will be played at West Campus Field on the Dominican University campus. The address is 7900 West Division Street, River Forest, Illinois 60305. Fans can follow the championship via live stats by clicking here. You can also watch the game on video feed by going here.
