NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The top-seeded and No. 12-ranked St. Olaf College men's soccer team plays host to crosstown-rival and second-seeded Carleton College in the championship game of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Playoffs on Saturday, Nov. 6.
St. Olaf (17-1-1) advanced to its fourth MIAC title game with a 2-1 victory over sixth-seeded Saint John's in the semifinals on Wednesday and will meet Carleton (12-3-2) with the MIAC Playoff Championship and the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament on the line. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. at Rolf Mellby Field.
Due to St. Olaf hosting the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) state cross country meet, fans will not be able to access the parking lots near Skoglund Center for Saturday's game. The parking lot by Rand Hall – located just up the hill from Rolf Mellby Field – will be reserved for fan parking and fans will have to walk down to the field from there. The other parking lots on campus are available on a first-come, first-served basis but no vehicles will be able to come down the hill to Skoglund Center.
Per MIAC policy, general admission tickets are $10, student tickets are $2, and children five and under get in free. St. Olaf students (with ID) will get in free compliments of the St. Olaf athletic department and MIAC passes will be honored. Live video and live stats will be available for those who are unable to attend the game.
In Wednesday's semifinal, the Oles got goals from first year
Shea Bechtel and sophomore
Hakeem Morgan to get past the Johnnies and advance to the final. After the teams traded goals in the opening 10 minutes, Morgan netted his team-leading 12th goal of the season in the 70th minute to give St. Olaf its 15th win in a row, which is tied for the longest streak in program history.
The victory improved St. Olaf's all-time record in the MIAC Playoffs to 7-6 as the Oles advanced to their fourth title game (2007, 2011, 2015). St. Olaf has won two of its three prior MIAC Playoff Championship games, defeating St. Thomas, 2-0, in 2015 and Carleton, 3-2, in double overtime in 2011.
Carleton used a goal 48 seconds into the game to defeat fifth-seeded Macalester, 1-0, in the other semifinal on Wednesday and is in search of its fourth MIAC Playoff title (2008, 2013, 2018). After missing out on the first four editions of the MIAC Playoffs, the Knights are in the tournament for the 14th time in a row and their 12 wins in the conference tournament are the second-most of any school (Gustavus – 14).
In the regular-season meeting between the two teams on Oct. 2, St. Olaf used late goals from sophomore
Casey McCloskey and Bechtel to down then-No. 22-ranked Carleton, 3-1, at Rolf Mellby Field. After the teams traded first-half goals, McCloskey netted the game-winner in the 82nd minute and Bechtel iced the win with three seconds remaining to five the Oles their first win over a nationally-ranked opponent since Nov. 14, 2015. The win also snapped Carleton's eight game (7-0-1) unbeaten run in the series.
The Oles and Knights have met four times in the MIAC Playoffs, with Carleton winning the last two, including a 2-1 win in the quarterfinals in 2019. All four previous postseason meetings have been decided by a single goal.
