TWO SECOND-HALF GOALS LIFTS FORT HAYS STATE TO #theGAC/MIAA MEN’S SOCCER TITLE
By: Eric Moyer, GAC Communications
BETHANY, Okla. – After a scoreless opening half of the GAC/MIAA Men’s Soccer Championship final, Fort Hays State scored twice in the second half to claim a 2-0 victory against Northeastern State on Sunday from Southern Nazarene’s Wanda Rhodes Soccer Complex.
In the 48th minute, Blake Arndt converted a pass from Alec Bevis to give the Tigers (13-5-2) a one-goal advantage. In the 67th minute, Andres Sandsto headed home an Ethan Doud service to double the Fort Hays State advantage.
The RiverHawks (10-10) outshot the Tigers, 13-11, but only put two shots on target. Tiger goalkeeper Kieran Brown successfully made a pair of saves. He recorded a pair of shutouts at the GAC/MIAA Championships to increase his season total to eight.
Tiger midfielder Nicolas Cortes garnered the Tournament MVP honors. Doud and Bevis landed on the All-Tournament Team, as did defenders Haruya Iwasaki and Jonathan Gammelvind.
Flynn Semmerling, Scott Woods and Luan Lamas represented the RiverHawks on the All-Tournament Team. Rogers State’s Callum Hubble and Michael Turner plus Southern Nazarene’s Juan Rodarte and Harei Maeda rounded out the 12-member All-Tournament Team.
The Tigers earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Super Region #3 Championships. They assured themselves a ninth-straight appearance, the longest active streak in the country. The selection show streams on NCAA.com at 5:30 p.m.