No. 22 Men's Soccer Scores Late Winner to Defeat Grand View

Des Moines, Iowa, (Sept. 30, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's soccer teams traveled to Des Moines, Iowa, Saturday, for a Heart of America Athletic conference doubleheader against Grand View (Iowa).  The No. 22 men's team opened the doubleheader with a late goal to secure a 2-1 win.

The men's game started with the two teams trading possession through the opening minutes of the contest.  The first shot on goal came with nearly 11 minutes played, as the attempt from Junior Defender Strahinja Djurdic (Brcko, Bosnia & Herzegovina) was saved by the Grand View keeper.  Both teams struggled to create quality chances over the next several minutes.  Missouri Valley had the next chance on goal, coming with less than 12 minutes to play in the half, as the shot from Junior Defender Daniel Fernandez (Madrid, Spain) was saved.  Grand View was held to without a shot on goal through the first half of play, and the teams went into halftime scoreless.

The second half began with the teams trading possession through much of play.  With nearly 20 minutes played after the restart, MVC earned a corner kick.  Junior Forward Sam Green (Bromley, England) took advantage of the opportunity, and scored to give Missouri Valley a 1-0 lead.  Grand View came close to tying the score less than three minutes later.  A foul was committed by Missouri Valley in its box, resulting in a penalty kick for GVU.  However, Sophomore Goalkeeper Vicente Benitez Delgado (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) saved the penalty kick shot to maintain the advantage.  With 11 minutes remaining in the contest, Grand View had its next opportunity, and scored on the chance to bring the teams into a 1-1 tie.  Missouri Valley tried to find a late winner, as Junior Midfielder Tate Richards (London, England) had a header saved near the 82-minute mark.  Grand View worked a pair of corner kicks over the next stretch of play, but could not create a chance on goal.  With just over three minutes remaining in the game, Green put a shot on goal, which got past the GVU keeper and moved Missouri Valley back in front, 2-1.  Grand View was held to without a shot in the final minutes of the game, and Missouri Valley came out with a 2-1 win.

Green scored two goals, and now has a team-high six goals, 14 points and three game-winning goals on the season.  This is also his third-straight multi-goal game.  Benitez Delgado made one save in goal to preserve the win.  Missouri Valley held an 11-9 advantage in shots and a 5-4 edge in corner kicks.

Missouri Valley improves to 5-3 on the season and 4-0 in the Heart.  Grand View drops to 5-4-1 overall and 0-3-1 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking soccer teams host MidAmerica Nazarene in a Heart doubleheader, Wednesday evening inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  The Pioneers are ranked No. 6 in the men's soccer coaches' poll and No. 24 in the women's poll.  Women's game starts at 5 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m.

Box Score-Click Here

About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.