NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The second-seeded St. Olaf College men's soccer team will take on fourth-ranked and top-seeded Gustavus Adolphus College in the championship game of the 2024 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Men's Soccer Playoffs on Saturday afternoon.
St. Olaf (13-4-3) and Gustavus (15-0-3) will meet for the MIAC Playoff title for the third season in a row in a 1 p.m. kickoff at Gustie Soccer Field on Saturday, Nov. 9. The meeting will be the fourth matchup between the two programs in the title game, with the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament on the line.
All tickets for the 2024 MIAC Playoffs will be sold and purchased online via
HomeTown Ticketing. There will not be cash sales at any venue; however, spectators can purchase tickets using a mobile device, including while at the venue. Tickets are available for purchase immediately. General admission adult tickets are $12 (plus HTT service charge). Student (with ID) tickets are $3 (plus HTT service charge), and children ages five and under are admitted free.
Live video and
live statistics will be available as well courtesy of Gustavus.
On Thursday, St. Olaf advanced to the championship game by using a fast start to claim a
4-1 victory over third-seeded Augsburg University in the semifinals at Rolf Mellby Field. The Oles scored three times in the opening 30 minutes before weathering a push from the Auggies early in the second half. Senior
Shea Bechtel, sophomore
Ryan Bechtel, and junior
Robi Buzakovic all had a goal and an assist in the win. The victory, coupled with other results across the country, moved St. Olaf up to No. 22 in the
NCAA Power Index (NPI), which is the new objective tool used to select the at-large bids for the NCAA Tournament.
In Thursday's other semifinal, Gustavus opened up a 3-0 led before having to hold off a fightback by fifth-seeded Carleton College in an eventual
3-2 win to set up the meeting of the top-two seeds on Saturday. The Oles and Gusties previously met in the championship games in 2007, 2022, and 2023, with St. Olaf claiming the last two titles after Gustavus was victorious by a 2-0 score in 2007. In 2022, Buzakovic scored twice in the second half, including the game-winner with 1:01 to go, to give the Oles a
2-1 win in St. Peter. Last year, the two teams played to a 1-1 tie, with Buzakovic again scoring for St. Olaf, before the Oles
advanced on penalties, 4-3.
Saturday's game will mark St. Olaf's seventh all-time appearance in the championship game, as the Oles are 3-2-1 in their six prior berths. The Gusties are in the championship game for the 10th time and are 6-1-2 to date. The two programs have combined to win 11 of the 20 MIAC Playoff titles since 2003, with Gustavus holding a conference-high seven titles (2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2012, 2014, 2019) and St. Olaf having four (2011, 2015, 2022, 2023). In the regular season, the Oles and Gusties played to a
3-3 tie in St. Peter on Oct. 23, with St. Olaf overcoming a 3-1 halftime deficit with two goals early in the second half.
