BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Second seeded Oglethorpe University will square off against fifth seeded Centre College tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. CT for the 2011 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference men's soccer championship.
Game One
Ben Van Nevel's overtime goal lifted Centre to a 1-0 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament semifinal win over top-seed Trinity and into Sunday's championship game. BOX SCORE
The loss for Trinity marks their first in SCAC play since 2005 when Centre defeated the Tigers 1-0 in Danville, Kentucky and ends the run of nine consecutive SCAC titles for Trinity.
Van Nevel's game-winner came with just 0:24 left in the first overtime on an assist from Tony Distler.
Trinity held a 16-9 edge in shots but Centre posted two more shots on target. Matt Cardone of Trinity totaled six saves while Chris Jackson posted three saves for Centre as the Colonels posted its 10th shutout of the season. Trinity held a 7-0 edge on corners.
Sophomore Brian Hines of Trinity notched three shots to lead the Tigers in the losing effort. The loss was the first of the year for Trinity who now has a record of 14-1-2.
The win advances Centre into the SCAC Championship at BSC Soccer Park on the Campus of Birmingham-Southern. Centre will square off against Oglethorpe who defeated Southwestern in the second semifinal match this evening 2-0.
After the game, SCAC Director of Communications Russell Kramer caught up with both head coaches along with senior Ben Van Nevel of Centre.
To listen to Trinity head coach Paul McGinlay, click here.
To listen to Centre head coach Jeb Burch, click here.
To listen to senior Ben Van Nevel of Centre, click here.
Game Two
Oglethorpe scored in the game's third minute and added one more goal in the second half on the way to a 2-0 win over Southwestern in the evening’s second SCAC Men’s Soccer Semifinal match. The Petrels improved to 16-3, while Southwestern closes out the season with a 8-10-1 record. BOX SCORE
Aaron Walker, a senior midfielder, put the Petrels on the board at 2:09 on an assist from Aleksander Tanjga. Junior forward Jeff Arsenault gave Oglethorpe a 2-0 lead at 48:28 off an assist from Ben Robertson.
Oglethorpe outshot the Pirates, 17-3 and held a 9-2 edge in corner kicks. Frank Peterson of Oglethorpe totaled two saves for the team’s fifth shutout of the season. Sophomore Daniel Poole notched five saves in goal for Southwestern.
Evan Perkins, Steven Resnik and Timothy Emma all recorded a shot for Southwestern in a losing effort.
Oglethorpe advances to play in tomorrow’s SCAC Men’s Soccer Championship Match against Centre in search of their first SCAC Title and trip to the NCAA Tournament.
After the game, SCAC Director of Communications Russell Kramer caught up with both head coaches along with senior midfielder Aaron Walker of Oglethorpe.
To listen to head coach Don Gregory of Southwestern, click here.
To listen to head coach Jon Akin of Oglethorpe, click here.
To listen to senior midfielder Aaron Walker of Oglethorpe, click here.
