SEWARD, Neb. – The all-important final regular season matchup for Concordia University, Nebraska Men’s Soccer squad will be inside Bulldog Stadium on Wednesday (Oct. 30). The Bulldogs will face off against Midland and will have a chance to seize their first regular season title. In the most recent contest, Concordia kept the Mount Marty Lancers at bay with a 4-0 shutout, rolling in its third consecutive win. CUNE is 6-2-8 and an unbeaten 5-0-4 in conference play.
This Week
Wednesday, Oct. 30 vs. Midland (8-5-4, 6-1-2 GPAC), 8 p.m.
Live Webcast | Live Stats | Location: Bulldog Stadium (Seward, Neb.)
By the numbers
· The Bulldogs were pounding the box with an 11-2 shot advantage (24-4 total) but were unable to find a first half score until the final two seconds. Freshman Oliver Benson kicked a free kick from 12 yards outside the box to give the visitors confidence going into the locker rooms. Ryan Wokutch tallied a score (via Ferdi Hagen) and an assist to D’Andre Williams sealing the victory in the second half. Mattis Hollnagel pushed a long feed to Youssef Heggy for his third score of the year. The stout Concordia defense collected its 7th shutout of the season and goalkeeper Nolan Fuelberth’s 5th.
· The Bulldog defense is known around the league for being rough and stingy, having only allowed 10 goals all season plus a staggering five in the conference. The next closest GPAC foe (Northwestern) has allowed double (20) the number of scores. With 0.63 goals allowed average, Concordia’s massive depth boast names like Fuelberth, Iker Casanova, Adrian Wambua, Michael Wyvill, Michael Lindberg, Spencer Kaufman, Sean Stratman and Hagen all come to mind. The press and counter press style of play gives opposing offenses no space which starts from the front of the lineup to the back making all 11 on the field a part of this suffocating defense.
· In 2022, Dordt got the better of the Bulldogs in a 4-3 win in Sioux Center. Since that time, Concordia has been unbeaten in regular season conference play, going 19-0-10. The current sophomores in the program have yet to see a conference loss in their scheduled slates. CUNE has won three of their last four against the Warriors taking a 4-1 victory in Seward for the 2023 bout.
· With only one game left, the top five teams in the league still have a shot at the GPAC crown. Midland, Morningside and Hastings all have 20 points, but the Broncos have already played all 10 games. Concordia and Northwestern have 19 points with a match left to finish as well, leaving the championship up for grabs. With a Morningside loss or tie and a Bulldog win, CUNE will take the conference regular season top spot for the first time in program history. Dordt (14 points), Dakota Wesleyan (12 points) and Briar Cliff (10 points) have already sealed tournament spots as the final three in.
· Concordia jumped up one spot in the NAIA RPI to 70th in the ratings. With a strength of schedule slotted 126th, the Bulldogs will look to improve their ranking against Midland (65th). MU has had a tough schedule ranked 39th in the country via RPI.
Midland
Head Coach Josh Nakayama’s team walks into the upcoming match 8-5-4 overall and a 6-1-2 GPAC showing through nine games. Midland has won five straight contests (four shutouts) and outscored its opponents 21-2 in the run. With an impressive 5-1-2 road record, the visitors are led by the offense averaging 15 shots per game and have totaled 42 goals, good enough for second in the conference in both categories. As a two-headed monster in the attacking third, Hugo Garcia-Rosado Duran (11) and Adnan Boulaghmal (nine) retain the top two spots for the GPAC in goals scored. The two have a combined 96 shots this season and Garcia paces the team with four assists. Hugo Sjoeberg has played all but 17 minutes between the posts, and the three time conference Defensive Player of the Week award winner has registered six shutouts. Sjoeberg has 84 saves on a .778 save percentage earning a 6-4-4 record.
Next Week
With such a close point spread in the standings, the Bulldogs will have to wait until after every contest is done on Wednesday to see where they shake out in the final rundown. Kickoff for the GPAC quarterfinal match is tentatively set for 7 p.m. CT on Tuesday night (Nov. 5).