WAVERLY, Iowa — The Gustavus men's soccer team's postseason run came to an end Saturday night, as the Gusties were defeated 4-1 by Calvin in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Gusties finish the season with a record of 11-4-7, while Calvin will advance to the Sweet 16.
"Calvin is a really quality team," said Head Coach
Tudor Flintham following the game. "They're fantastic. They've gone to final fours and the national championship game within their very recent history. You expect a very good team like that to show up, and that's exactly what they did."
Calvin took the lead early into the first half, scoring in the 13th minute for a 1-0 lead. The Gusties responded not too long after, as
Spencer Skjeldstad sent a picturesque cross into the box that was headed into the goal by
Joe Flory to even the score at one apiece. The Knights beat
Wesley Sanders for a 2-1 lead at the break, and never looked back.
Calvin controlled the play in the second half, getting two more goals past Sanders for the eventual 4-1 final.
The Gusties tallied seven shots on goal in their season finale, getting two from
Jared Hecht and Skjeldstad, while
Alex Krumenauer, Flory, and
Sam Just accounted for the other three. Sanders made six saves in his final game as a Gustie.
"The boys battled today," Flintham said. "They gave everything they had in their legs, and we're super proud of them - especially the fifth-year seniors. It's hard to leave Gustavus and say you've left it a better place with a program that has the history we do, but these guys have been absolutely fantastic.
"We really turned what was looking like not a great season into a pretty successful one this year. We were penalty kicks away from another MIAC championship, and obviously making the NCAA tournament and winning a game is not a small accomplishment. I'm proud of our conference - the MIAC this year was so strong, and I think we really prepared each other for the tournament. Three MIAC teams in the round of 32 is really cool, and one will definitely be in the Sweet 16 again. I'm really proud of our group, but also proud of our conference for representing the North Region really well."
