SAINT PETER, Minn. — The Gustavus men's soccer team is set to travel to Carleton Thursday morning for a MIAC semifinal playoff matchup in Northfield at 11:30 a.m. Following a 2-0 quarterfinal win over Saint John's, the Gusties, who finished third in the league, will travel to the two-seeded Knights (15-1-1 overall, 8-1-1 MIAC), who received a first-round bye in the tournament.  

GUSTIES IN THE MIAC PLAYOFFS

The MIAC Men's Soccer Playoffs began in 2003 and since then Gustavus has made 17 appearances with a record of 16-9, including a league-best seven championships. This year's playoff appearance is the seventh consecutive for Gustavus, after falling in the title game to St. Olaf 2-1 last season. The Gusties last won the league playoff in 2019 when they defeated Saint John's 6-2 in the semifinals and St. Thomas 3-1 in the championship.

THE SERIES

Thursday's game marks the 49th all-time meeting between Gustavus and Carleton on the soccer pitch with the Gusties holding a 29-12-7 advantage in the series. The two teams last met in the playoffs in 2014, as the Gusties dealt the Kights a 1-0 semifinal setback. The Gusties are 1-1-1 against Carleton in the all-time playoff series. Prior to the 2014 postseason win, the two teams tied in the 2012 title game, with the Gusties winning on penalties, 7-6. Carleton's only playoff win over Gustavus came in 2011, winning 1-0 in the semifinals. 

LAST TIME THEY MET — GUSTIES vs. KNIGHTS

The Gusties suffered their first loss of the season against the Knights on Sept. 13 in Northfield. Carleton spoiled the Gustavus regular season 26-game unbeaten streak that dated back to October of 2021. 

Both teams played to a 0-0 deadlock in the first 45, each getting two shots on goal a piece. The Knights brought the offensive heat in the second, managing five shots and three corners in just 10 minutes of play. Carleton broke the scoring deadlock at 72:50 in the game, as the Knights played a loose ball into the box that was sent past Wesley Sanders for the lead. 

The Gusties scrambled to even the score in the game's final minutes, but struggled to find the back of the net. Alex Krumenauer had a chance to be the hero for the Gusties with five minutes remaining, as the senior took a ball from Otis Anderson in the box but sent it just high of the open net in front of him. 

The Gusties finished the game with 11 shots, but only three on goal. Sam Just, Mason Gilliand, and Carlos Robles each tallied a shot on goal, while Sanders made three of four saves between the pipes.

LAST ACTION

The Gustavus men's soccer team earned a semifinal spot after rolling to a 2-0 shutout victory over Saint John's on Monday afternoon. For the second time this season, Jared Hecht scored both goals against the Johnnies, while Sanders picked up the clean sheet. Hecht scored on the bookends of the match, tallying goal one four minutes into play and No. 2 with just four minutes remaining. 

Hecht got the home fans on their feet to take an early 1-0 lead, beating Johnnie keeper Evan Siefken on a feed from Owen Johnson and Jack Isroff. Sanders made the save of the game shortly after, robbing Saint John's of the game tying goal. Sanders leaped into the air to punch the shot from Riley Buxell over the net and maintain the Gustie lead. Both teams managed even offensive pressure through the first 45, finishing with three shots on goal apiece at the half. 

Unsatisfied with the one goal lead, the Gusties emerged from the break with all the offensive momentum. Gustavus combined for a series of scoring opportunities in the second, including four chances off the foot of Joe Flory. Hecht's second half goal only sealed the deal for the playoff victory, as Gustavus outshot Saint John's 15-1 in the second. 

Sanders made all four saves in goal, effectively tying the program record for career shutouts (26) set by Mark Genosky (1989-92). The shutout is his sixth this season. Joe Flory and Nick Katzman shared the lead in shots on goal, each totaling three of the Gusties' total 11. Hecht, in only nine games played, has 10 goals on the season after Monday's performance, and now owns four multi-goal games this year. 

SCOUTING THE GUSTIES

The Gusties finished third in the conference this year with a record of 5-2-3. Through 18 games this season, the Gusties average 2.06 goals per game and allow 0.94 against. The Gusties have outshot opponents 326-155 this season, including a mark of 151-80 in shots on goal. The Gusties average 18.1 shots/game and 8.6 on frame per game. Hecht leads the offense with 21 points on 10 goals and one assist. Next for the Gusties is Raphael Cattelin, with 15 points on five goals and five assists. Owen Johnson leads the team in assists for the second straight season, tallying 11 so far this year. This marks the third season in a row for Johnson with double-digit assists, and the senior currently ranks third all-time for career assists (36). Johnson is six assists away from the program career record set by Matthew Gibbons' (2017-21), and three away from passing Larry Shelhamer (1972-75) for second. Wesley Sanders is the Gusties' top keeper this season, posting a goals against average of 0.89 and a save percentage of 0.797. Sanders has picked up a record of 9-2-5 in 17 games played. 

SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS

Carleton opens MIAC playoff action boasting a No. 12 national ranking, according to the United Soccer Coaches national poll. The Knights have lost only one game this season — a 1-0 decision to conference regular season champs St. Olaf on Sept. 26. Through 17 games this season, Carleton is averaging 9.00 points per game, 3.06 goals per game, and allowing only 0.24 goals. All three statistics lead the conference. Carleton leads all of NCAA Division III in goals against average (0.235), save percentage (0.913), and shutout percentage (0.765). The Knights' defensive dominance is due large in part to the performance of senior goalkeeper Daniel Linder. Linder has allowed only three goals against in 13 games played, making 29 saves for 11 total shutouts and a record of 12-1-1. 

Leading the Carleton offense is sophomore Ben Pennell, who has proven himself to be one of the conference's top-scorers, ranking second in the conference for points (33), goals (13), and shots on goal (38). Pennell has scored a point in all but five of the Knights games this season. Briggs Priem is the next top point getter for the Knights, scoring 19 on seven goals and five assists. 

THE PLAYOFF FIELD

The opposite semifinal game features Macalester (four-seed) and St. Olaf (one-seed). The Oles are ranked No. 11 in this week's USC national Division III poll, and earned a first-round bye alongside Carleton after winning the league with a record of 8-0-2 in the conference. The Scots, on the other hand, advanced to the semifinal game after defeating five-seed Augsburg 2-0 on Monday. Earlier this season, the Scots and Oles tied 1-1 on Sept. 30, the Oles' first of two league ties (second came from the Gusties on Oct. 24). The game will feature two of the MIAC's top offensive powerhouses in Macalester's Hans Haenicke and St. Olaf's Victor Gaulmin. Haenicke scored his ninth goal of the season on Monday, and now has 23 points this year, while Gaulmin finished the regular season with 31. The Scots are making their 14th playoff appearance and ninth in a row, while St. Olaf, the reigning playoff champions, are making their 11th and fourth in a row. This is just the third time these two teams have met in the postseason, with Macalester owning both victories, a 2-0 win in 2004, and a 1-0 decision in 2009.

Thursday's two semifinal winners will meet on Saturday, November 4 in the 2023 MIAC Men's Soccer Playoff championship game. The championship game is tentatively scheduled for 1:00 p.m. on the home field of the highest remaining seed. The MIAC Playoff Champion will receive the postseason championship plaque and the conference's automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Tournament.

HIGH SEEDS ADVANCE

No. 3 Gustavus and No. 4 Macalester both advanced to the playoff semifinals with 2-0 victories over No. 6 Saint John's and No. 5 Augsburg, respectively. It is the first time since 2019 that the higher seeds have advanced in the MIAC Men's Soccer quarterfinals.

GOAT-IS ANDERSON

Otis Anderson broke the program record for assists in a game with four on Saturday against St. Scholastica. Anderson added helpers on the first, fourth, fifth, and sixth goals. He broke a record of three assists in a single game set by seven different players nine times, most recently by Nicholas Leach in 2019 against Simpson. With an assist on the second Gustie goal Monday, the fifth-year defender now has 10 assists this season and 15 in his career. For his performance last weekend, Anderson was named MIAC Offensive Player of the Week, the league announced Monday afternoon. 

HECHT YEAH! (x2)

Jared Hecht has certainly been the offensive story for the Gusties in the past few weeks. After missing the first nine games of the season due to injury, Hecht has made an instant impact in his return. The senior striker has scored 10 goals in nine games played, maintaining a points per game of 2.33 and goals per game of 1.11, which leads the conference. For the second time this season, Hecht scored both goals in the Gusties' 2-0 win over Saint John's. The regular season game against the Johnnies on Oct. 6 was Hecht's first back on the pitch, and he tallied both Gustie goals in that competition as well. Hecht now has four multi-goal games this season.

WES "SHUTOUT" SANDERS

With his four saves Monday, All-American goalkeeper Wesley Sanders posted the 26th shutout of his career, effectively tying the program record for career shutouts set by Mark Genosky (1989-92). The shutout is his sixth this season. Sanders' 26 career shutouts ranks fourth among all active NCAA DIII goalkeepers, and sixth among all divisions of the NCAA.