No. 1 Seed Men's Soccer Defeats No. 5 Seed Benedictine in Heart Postseason Semifinal

Marshall, Mo., (Nov. 7, 2023)- The No. 1 seed Missouri Valley College men's soccer team continued play in the 2023 Heart of America Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Postseason Tournament, Presented by WinWon Technologies Tuesday evening hosting No. 5 seed Benedictine (Kan.).  The Vikings scored four goals in the second half, and finished out a 5-1 victory to advance in the tournament.

Missouri Valley opened play with the better of possession, and eventually worked its first quality chance with nearly 14 minutes played.  Freshman Forward Kerim Akpinar (Bremen, Germany) set up Junior Midfielder Malik Hasanovikj (Skopje, North Macedonia) with a shot in the Benedictine box, which he put past the keeper and into goal to put MVC in front, 1-0.  Moments after the restart, Junior Midfielder Yoshiki Igarashi (Tokyo, Japan) nearly increased the advantage, as the Ravens keeper needed to make a save on his attempt.  Approaching the 16-minute mark, the Vikings built up pressure again, this time the pair of Hasanovikj and Akpinar worked together and set up Junior Forward Sam Green (Bromley, England) with a chance.  Green put his shot into goal, and increased the lead to 2-0.  Sophomore Goalkeeper Vicente Benitez Delgado (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) made his first save of the game nearly one minute after play resumed.  Midway through the half, Missouri Valley created another opportunity on goal.  Green and Senior Defender Kazuki Hashimoto (Tokorozawa, Japan) set up Junior Forward Luka Perendija (Obrenovac, Serbia) with a shot that beat the BC keeper and increased the advantage to 3-0.  The Vikings tacked on one more goal at the end of the half.  Green scored his second goal of the game, off an assist from Sophomore Defender Jack Hurrell (Long Melford, England), and Missouri Valley went into halftime on top, 4-0.

The first chance on goal in the second half came from Sophomore Midfielder Julius Kruger (Berlin, Germany), with just over four minutes played, and his shot was saved off the line by a Benedictine defender.  The two teams traded possession over the next stretch, but the Vikings added another goal with just over 21 minutes played in the half.  Perendija set up Green, who recorded a hat-trick to make it a 5-0 score.  Missouri Valley tested the BC keeper twice later in the half, but could not increase the advantage.  The Ravens cut into the deficit in the closing minutes of the game, scoring just past the 86-minute mark, but Missouri Valley finished out a 5-1 win, advancing into the championship match.

Green recorded his first hat-trick of the season.  He last scored three goals in a single game back on Oct. 18, 2022 in a 3-1 win over Graceland (Iowa).  Green added his fourth game-winning goal and one assist to finish with a career-high seven points. Hasanovikj recorded his first goal and sixth assist on the season, while Perendija added his second goal and first assist.  Akpinar added two assists, with Hashimoto and Hurrell each registering one assist in the game.  Benitez Delgado made one save in goal.  The Vikings held a 15-6 advantage in shots, and earned three corner kicks.

Missouri Valley improves to 12-5, while Benedictine drops to 10-5-4.

Up next, the Viking men's soccer team will host the championship game of the Heart Postseason Tournament, against No. 2 seed MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.), Friday at 7 p.m., inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  Missouri Valley defeated the Pioneers, 1-0, back on Oct. 4.  Missouri Valley is hosting the conference tournament final for the first time since 2017, and will play for a possible fifth tournament championship in program-history, and the first since 2018.

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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.