msoc
Nicholas Kedzuch
2
Fort Hays State FHSU (11-6-4)
3
Winner Quincy QU (21-1-2)
Fort Hays State FHSU
(11-6-4)
2
Final
3
Quincy QU
(21-1-2)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Fort Hays State FHSU 2 0 2
Quincy QU 0 3 3

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | | Nicholas Kedzuch

Hawks' Second Half Dramatics Punch Ticket to Louisville

TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The top-seeded Quincy University men's soccer team never panicked.  Trailing 2-0 heading into halftime against Fort Hays State University, QU was poised to strike.  They are a second half team.  The Hawks have score 48 of their 68 goals after halftime this season.  They only trailed by two goals one other time this year and it ended in a 3-1 loss to the University of Indianapolis in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Championship.  This time the Hawks would answer with three goals in the second half.  The Hawks would not be denied a trip to Louisville, Ky. and the NCAA National Tournament Semifinals.  The 2014 Hawks won their 21st game to tie the school record for wins in a season.  The last QU team to win 21 games was the 1981 NAIA National Champion.  It was the last national championship for QU men's soccer.
 
The No. 5 Hawks (21-1-2) fired five shots in the first 20 minutes with two on goal.  Kent Freund saved both shots to keep the Hawks off the board early.
 
Fort Hays State (11-6-4) put one shot on goal in the first 20 minutes that was saved by Drew Duncan (21-1-2).  In the 21st minute Maurizio Costa sent a cross in from the right side to Michael Cole.  Cole finished giving the Tigers a 1-0 lead. 
 
The Tigers struck again in the 22nd minute.  Michael Cole sent a ball to Austin Clifton that released him up the left wing past the defender.  Clifton found the net to put the Hawks down 2-0.
 
QU had a couple of chances late in the first half.  Xhovani Dokaj settled a ball and passed it to Jordan Roberts who put it just over the crossbar from six yards out.  With under a minute to play, Roberts sent in a corner that was headed off the post.
 
The Hawks went into the half trailing 2-0.  Kent Freund finished the first half with five saves for FHSU.
 
The Hawks came out firing in the second half and it was not long before the Tiger defense let one slip.  In the 55th minute the Tigers failed to clear the ball.  Jake Bond took the ball on the right side and sent a cross to the goal mouth.  Ethan Venvertloh headed the ball past the keeper to the near post to kick-start the QU offense.  It was Venvertloh's seventh goal of the season.
 
In the 62nd minute, Pete Condol created space from a defender on the left side.  He used that space to send a low cross to Jordan Roberts for a header goal at the right post.  The equalizer was Robert's 23rd goal of the year.
 
With the game tied, 2-2, the Hawks and Tigers both opened up their offenses.  The Tigers began to press late and Drew Duncan was up to the task with three saves in the second half. 
 
In the 83rd minute, Steve McAnany sent a long ball down the middle of the field to a streaking Xhovani Dokaj.  Dokaj blew past the defender and watched the ball fall just over the defender's head to his feet.  The sophomore was one-on-one with the keeper, Kent Freund and beat him to the right post with his 11th game-winning goal of the season.  It was also his 18th tally of the year.
 
The Hawks closed out the game as Drew Duncan finished with five saves.  QU took 22 shots with 12 on goal.  Kent Freund saved nine. 
 
The No. 5 Hawks will travel to the NCAA National Tournament Semifinal in Louisville, Ky.  They are set to face No. 3 Lynn University on Thursday, Dec. 4.  The winner will play in the National Championship on Saturday, Dec. 6, against the winner of No. 1 University of Charleston and No. 11 Colorado Mesa University.
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