BOXSCORE BOXSCORE
NORTHFIELD, Minn. --
Chad Gilmer (JR, Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson HS) scored a first-half goal for Augsburg College, but a goal with 5:29 left in regulation time sent top-seed St. Olaf College to the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Playoff title game with a 2-1 win in the conference semifinal on Wednesday afternoon at St. Olaf's Rolf Mellby Field.
Augsburg (10-5-3 overall), the No. 4 seed in the playoffs, drew even in the contest with Gilmer's goal in the 23rd minute. But in the 85th minute, second-half substitute Ryan Johnsrud (SO, Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong HS) gave the Oles the lead, heading a long cross by Will Totemeh (JR, Coon Rapids, Minn./Fridley HS) into the net.
St. Olaf (15-3-1 overall), ranked No. 7 in the latest Naitonal Soccer Coaches Association of America Division III national poll and No. 23 in the D3soccer.com national poll, will advance to host crosstown rival and No. 2-seed Carleton (11-5-2), which beat No. 3 seed Gustavus (14-1-3 overall) 1-0 in Wednesday's other semifinal. The championship game will be held on Saturday at 1 p.m., with the winner earning the MIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III national tournament.
"Their second goal was well taken by Johnsrud, but I think we could have handled the moment much better," said Augsburg head coach
Greg Holker. "Credit to him and St. Olaf for taking advantage of their opportunities. They have a very good team and I hope they win Saturday and keep winning in the NCAA tournament."
The game was a back-and-forth battle, with St. Olaf outshooting Augsburg by an 8-6 margin. Augsburg had five corner kicks, compared to St. Olaf's one.
Augsburg held control of possession early, but the Oles drew the first goal of the game, taking advantage of a counterattack following an Augsburg corner kick. The Oles earned possession following a scramble, and David Rosenthal (SO, Burnsville, Minn./Apple Valley HS) fed Blake Dressen (SR, Wayzata, Minn./Blake School) for the goal at the 10:29 mark of the first half.
"I feel great about our performance today," Holker said. "I thought our guys worked extremely hard, played well and were in control of the game from the very beginning. St. Olaf scored a very good goal when they countered our corner kick early in the game, and that's what they do so well. They are explosive up there with Rosenthal and Mackenzie Lund (SO, Hudson, Wis.) and Dressen. On top of that, they have some depth there as well, with Ryan Johnsrud providing the evidence."
The Auggies drew even in the 23rd minute. Following a corner kick,
Mathias Macody Lund (SO, Bergen, Norway) served the ball from the right side of the box to the left side of the goal, and a charging Gilmer headed it home for his third goal of the season.
"We answered with a very well-taken goal from Gilmer off of Mathias's service, and then we absolutely locked the Oles into their back third of the field the rest of the half. It looked like it was a matter of time before we would break through again," Holker said.
Holker said that the Auggies had chances to tie the game in the second half, including a shot in the 76th minute, as an attempt by Gilmer went just wide of the net on the left side.
"In the second half, the game got a little more chaotic and I think that worked in their favor," Holker said. "We did settle things down, though, and had three great looks on goal. Ozzy (
Peter Osborn (SR, Eagan, Minn./Eastview HS)) slapped a free kick that just missed wide, Mathias sliced inside and ripped a cross that was cleared away, and Chad beat two Ole defenders to create a 1-v-1 with Harry (St. Olaf goalkeeper Harry Ullmann (JR, St. Louis Park, Minn.)) that he just missed past the far post."
Will Morlock (SO, Grand Haven, Mich.) had two saves in goal for the Auggies, while Ullmann had one save for St. Olaf.
For the Auggies, Gilmer had three shots in the game, while
Matt Bowman (SR, Maple Grove, Minn.), Macody Lund and Osborn had one shot each.
Despite the loss, there may still be a chance for Augsburg to earn one of the 19 "Pool C" at-large bids to the 61-team national tournament. In the latest NCAA Division III regional rankings on Wednesday, Augsburg is ranked No. 4 in the North Region, behind St. Olaf, Loras (Iowa) and Luther (Iowa). Carleton is ranked No. 5, with Wisconsin-Whitewater No. 6 and Gustavus No. 7.
"All hope isn't lost, although it is very dim at this moment. There is the slightest chance we get our name called on Sunday night as an at-large selection," Holker said. "It will be tough with five losses on our record, but we played the most challenging schedule in our region and that is recognized by the NCAA selection committee and gives us a chance. We just have to hope all the favorites win out (St. Lawrence and Hobart didn't do us any favors in the Liberty Conference with losses today) across the country."
Augsburg appeared in its fourth MIAC postseason playoff in the last six seasons, including a playoff championship in 2010 and playoff runner-up finish in 2008. Augsburg appeared in the NCAA Division III national tournament in both 2008 and 2010. This year's roster featured six seniors -- Osborn,
Matt Bowman (SR, Maple Grove, Minn.),
Ahmed Gobana (SR, Burnsville, Minn.),
Peter Loyd (SR, Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong HS),
Max Macemon (SR, St. Anthony Village, Minn./Agriculture and Food Sciences Academy) and
David Scheller (SR, Maple Grove, Minn.).
"To date, this senior class is 46-22-12 -- a pretty incredible record," Holker said. "They've been to two NCAA tournaments, three MIAC playoffs, and lifted a trophy for the first time at Augsburg since 1980. They are a gifted group and have been a tremendous influence on this soccer family. I hope they get one more chance to play next week -- they are definitely good enough."
