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Fort Lewis College Athletics

Scoreboard

1
Fort Lewis FLC (12-5-4, 6-1-3)
2
Winner Midwestern St. MSU (20-0-1, 9-0-0)
Fort Lewis FLC
(12-5-4, 6-1-3)
1
Final
2
Midwestern St. MSU
(20-0-1, 9-0-0)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Fort Lewis FLC 0 1 1
Midwestern St. MSU 1 1 2
Skyhawks men's soccer vs. UCCS - Nov. 17, 2023
MSU Athletics
Fort Lewis finishes its season with 12 wins for the second time since 2011.

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | | Hayden Mangan, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Comeback falls short as 8th-seeded Skyhawks fall 2-1 to 1st-seeded Mustangs in second round of NCAA Tournament

WICHITA FALLS, Texas – The Fort Lewis men's soccer team's spectacular season came to a close Sunday afternoon as the eighth-seeded Skyhawks dropped a 2-1 decision to the first-seeded Mustangs at Midwestern State University in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Stang Park.
 
Originally voted to finish seventh in this season's Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, Fort Lewis marched on to become the RMAC Regular Season Champions, reaching as high as 10th on the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 Poll, and finishing with a 12-5-4 record to match the most wins by any Skyhawks team since 2011. Midwestern State advances to 20-0-1 on the season and into the Sweet Sixteen.

"This time last year we were all sitting at home watching these games. To triple the number of wins we had last year to this year, to win a championship, to win a first-round game in the NCAA Tournament, I couldn't be more proud of the guys," head coach David Oberholtzer commented. "And the seniors that were a part of this group, so proud of them and everything they've done for the program. Midwestern is a super-talented team. Our keeper (Lucas Martin) played an amazing game today, we had our chances, and it was a good game."
 
Facing a daunting Mustangs team that has yet to lose a match, the Skyhawks faced the challenge head-on and forced MSU into a position they have not found themselves in since the season opener back on Sep. 7.
 
The Mustangs spread the field well and kept pressure on Fort Lewis forcing the Skyhawks into its own defending third for a majority of the match and allowing the home team to rifle off 21 shots against FLC's 11. In addition, Midwestern State placed nine shots on goal to Fort Lewis' two.
 
Fifth-year Jack Larkin notched the opening goal in the 10th minute as he found himself behind the Skyhawks' back line and finished with a one-touch from his right foot on the service from Jecsi Orellana-Espinal. Heading out of the half with a one-goal deficit, play began to ramp up on both sides as the Skyhawks began to force their way into MSU's defending third.
 
In the 68th minute, Max Gonzales took service from Liam Pritchard into the Fort Lewis penalty box and found just enough space to fire a rocket into the back of the net. However, just four minutes later Anton Hjalmarsson found himself behind the Mustangs' defense and netting FLC's first goal of the match in a one-on-one scenario with the keeper. Tomas Duenes was credited for the assist. Hjalmarsson's goal was the first allowed by MSU on its home pitch since its season opener. 
 
In the end, Midwestern State began to slow down the pace, and down to ten men, Fort Lewis could not produce a shot across the final ten minutes. Martin ended his afternoon with seven outstanding saves. 

For fans looking to grab a piece of the 2023 season, RMAC Championship and NCAA Tournament apparel is still on sale through BSN and Event1.
 
Notables
-Hjalmarsson and Gabriel Legendre each finish the season with 11 goals. Legendre tallied one assist on the season the Hjalmarsson's 11.
-Duenes' assist was his ninth of the season to pair with his eight goals.
-Fort Lewis matched its 2015 mark of 12 wins in a season: the most by any Skyhawks team since 2011 and the 17th season in program history with 12 or more.
-Five Skyhawks played in their final match today and will walk away with both an NCAA Tournament win and the distinguished title of RMAC Champions: Aymaro Vargas, Loic Jean-Baptiste, Ciaran Feeney, Jakob Maurek, and Matt Baldridge.
 
End of the Line
Fort Lewis, now heading into its off-season, looks ahead to its 2024 signing class, a spring full of exhibitions, and getting back to the pitch in preparation for its fall campaign next year.
 
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Scoring Summary

Scoring Summary
Scoring Team Scoring Play
10:48
MSU Jack Larkin (5)
Assisted By: Jecsi Orellana-Espinal
GOAL by MSU Larkin, Jack Assist by Orellana-Espinal, Jecsi.
62:28
MSU Max Gonzales (4)
Assisted By: Liam Pritchard
GOAL by MSU Gonzales, Max Assist by Pritchard, Liam.
66:27
FLC Anton Hjalmarsson (11)
Assisted By: Tomas Duenes Gonzalez
GOAL by FLC Hjalmarsson, Anton Assist by Duenes Gonzalez, Tomas.

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