Top seeds win big to set up repeat UMAC men's soccer championship final

Top seeds win big to set up repeat UMAC men's soccer championship final

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SUPERIOR, Wis.---For the fourth time in as many seasons, the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) men's soccer postseason championship final will feature the University of Wisconsin-Superior and the College of St. Scholastica as both teams won big in the semifinal round Wednesday. 

The only difference from each of the last three years is that the championship game will be hosted in Superior, Wisconsin, as the No. 1 seed Yellowjackets used a strong second half to take down No. 5 Crown College 6-2.

In the opening semifinal, No. 2 St. Scholastica moved on to yet another championship game after a three-goal first half to dismantle No. 4 Martin Luther College 4-1.

| Tournament Site | Semifinal 1 Recap | Semifinal 2 Recap |

No. 1 Wisconsin-Superior def. No. 5 Crown, 6-2 | Box Score | 
After advancing to the semifinal on penalty kicks Monday, No. 5 Crown looked to keep its postseason run alive against the top-seed No. Wisconsin-Superior. The Storm managed to give the Yellowjackets a scare taking a 2-1 lead early in the second half, but the 'Jackets responded with five-straight goals to advance to the title game. 

Blake Doyea got the Yellowjackets on the board first in the 13th minute on a header goal from Elliot Champman and Fernando Bicalho. The Storm responded in the 26th on a goal from Kirby Shettler who was set up by Ger Jones to even the game 1-1. 

In the second half, the Storm wasted no time getting their offense going when the quarterfinal hero Storm Heyer scored on an outside breakaway in the 51st minute to put the Storm up 2-1. Chapman responded 41 seconds later with the equalizer on a pass from Felix Blick. Then, 48 seconds after that, Bicalho netted an unassisted goal to give the Yellowjackets the lead again. 

Up 3-2, the Yellowjackets gave themselves some breathing room when Eric Watson scored on a setup from Chapman in the 61st minute. The Yellowjackets added two more goals before the 70th minute was complete off the foot of James Bruce to seal the win. 

Seven different players recorded points for the Yellowjackets with Doyea leading the team offensively with four shots. Heyer led the Storm with two shots and Eli Etzel recorded eight saves including two big stops in the first 45 minutes to keep the Storm in the game early. 

No. 2 St. Scholastica def. No. 3 Martin Luther, 4-1 | Box Score | 
Earlier in the season, the No. 2 Saints and No. 3 Knights split their series making the semifinal an intriguing one with an opportunity for the Knights to end the Saints' success in the UMAC postseason. However, the Saints poured in the offense early and never looked back en route to their 11th win of the season. 

Darby Henderson got the Saints on the board first in the 17th minute after putting in his own rebound. The Saints built their lead to two goals in the 29th minute when Jordan Finneran scored on a shallow angle shot from the corner. Less than three minutes later, Luke Buckton put the Saints up 3-0 on an assist from Alex Dodd. 

The Knights cut the Saints' lead to 3-1 with just over a minute left in the first half when Joe Graumann scored just in front of the Saints' keeper. The fourth-and-final goal came off a bounce of Martin Luther for an own goal in the 57th minute to make it 4-1. 

Finneran led the offense for the Saints with five shots including four on goal while Henderson had three on target. Corey Bulheller made four saves in net for the Saints, while Gabriel Plocher tallied 11 saves for the Knights. Graumann led the Knights with four shots on goal. 
 

Playoff Schedule
Quarterfinal Round – Monday, Oct. 29
No. 5 Crown ties No. 4 Minnesota Morris 2-2 (Crown advances on penalties) | Box Score | CC Recap | UMM Recap |

Semifinal Round – Wednesday, Oct. 31
No. 1 Wisconsin-Superior def. No. 5 Crown, 6-2 | Box Score | CC Recap | UWS Recap |
No. 2 St. Scholastica def. No. 3 Martin Luther, 4-1 | Box Score | CSS Recap | MLC Recap |

Championship – Saturday, Nov. 3
No. 2 St. Scholastica AT No. 1 Wisconsin-Superior, Duluth, Minn., 4:30 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video |
 

Ticket Information
All UMAC postseason events have the following set admissions prices: Adults, $10; college students and seniors, $5; youth (Age 6-18), $5; age 5 and under, FREE. Any UMAC students, faculty and staff are free with a valid and current institutional ID. No other passes will be accepted.
 
All tournament information including scores, recaps, team information and more can be found on the UMAC Men’s SoccerTournament page. Keep up with all of the tournament action on Twitter and Instagram using #UMACchamp.