MEN’S SOCCER

The 2nd-seeded HU men’s soccer team is headed to the championship match of the Crossroads League Tournament for the second straight year after a 1-0 OT win over 3rd-seeded Bethel University (10-8-1) Saturday afternoon at King Stadium in semifinal action of the league tourney.

With this win, the Foresters improve to 14-4-2 on the year and will look to defend their CL title from a year ago when they picked off top-seeded Spring Arbor 2-1 in the CL finale.

As best described by Coach Lawson as a fantastic piece of individual brilliance, junior Noah Fleming scored HU’s golden goal just over four minutes in the extra period to keep his team’s postseason dreams alive. After winning a 50/50 challenge, the junior forward beat his defender off the dribble and then ripped a shot back netting on a beautifully left-footed strike.

“It was great to see Noah get onto the scoring sheet,” said Lawson. “He creates a lot for us and knowing how much work he puts in; it was great to see him get his reward today for staying with it.”

Regulation could be best described as a dog fight with both teams leaving it all on the pitch. Nothing came easy as the match featured just 13 shots with the Pilots logging eight to HU’s five. Junior keeper Gabe Greenfield finished with three saves to earn the clean sheet. It’s his eighth shutout of the year in net.

“I’m so proud of the boys for the effort they put forth today,” said Lawson. “We were not at our best offensively but what we brought defensively in term of our organization and grit kept us in the game.

“Bethel is a strong side. They’ve been on a roll so to keep them at bay offensively and eventually take the match to overtime where we got an opportunity is exciting. The boys definitely put in a shift today. They stuck together and showed the necessary mental toughness to see a game of this magnitude through.”

The Foresters have a week to prepare for a rematch of last year’s finals. HU will travel to top-seeded Spring Arbor on Saturday with a league championship and an automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament on the line.