EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — Right place, right time.
After 100-plus minutes of grueling action between two of the top teams in Division III, it turned out to be almost simple. Simple, but sweet, for the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's soccer team.
Tate McDermott (Fr. - Grimes, Iowa/Dallas Center-Grimes) headed in a rebound in the 106th minute to break a scoreless draw and give the seventh-ranked Blugolds a second consecutive trip to the Sweet 16 with a 1-0 victory over No. 16 Hope College in double overtime on Saturday at Simpson Field.
With time running out before a looming potential penalty kick shootout,
Noah Malcook (So. - Fitchburg, Wis.) broke free on the right wing and sent a cross into the box.
Tobias Volkmann (Fr. - Three Lakes, Wis.) met it with his head, but his header rattled off the right post. The rebound bounced to an unmarked McDermott, who headed it past a diving keeper to end the game and give the Blugolds their second regional championship in program history.
"We knew if we could isolate Noah wide, he could do something one-vs.-one," McDermott said. "He put a nice cross in. (Volkmann) did well to get on the end of a header, and then it kind of just fell right on my head so I just gave it a tap."
It was the breakthrough the Blugolds needed to avoid penalty kicks and keep their season alive. UW-Eau Claire (17-1-4) will play in the sectional semifinals next weekend at a yet-to-be-determined time and place.
"Just ecstatic for our guys," Head Coach
Casey Holm said. "At home, to make the goal in overtime, not have to go to PKs and to celebrate with our fans."
UW-Eau Claire held a 12-4 advantage in shots, but the Flying Dutchmen kept the game scoreless for more than 100 minutes. Defensively, the Blugolds did their part by holding Hope to two shots on target.
"We were pushing. I thought we were on the front foot, especially in that second half, and then we did a good job to finally get on the end of one," McDermott said. "We had tons of chances, but it was good to finally put one away before penalties."
It was a fifth consecutive shutout for UW-Eau Claire. The Blugolds have not been scored upon since October 30.
Spencer Banks (Sr. - Stevens Point, Wis.) made two saves in Saturday's regional final victory.
"I think it all goes down to our principles and the guys in front of us," Banks said. "Yeah, it's a clean sheet and it goes under my statistics, but that's a team effort. It's all 11 guys that are out there fighting for it."
The Blugolds will play on the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the second time. They reached the Sweet 16 last year before falling to eventual national champion St. Olaf 4-3. UW-Eau Claire now owns a 4-1-1 record all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
"This is kind of why you come to Eau Claire, because they've established that this is the standard," McDermott said. "So to kind of re-affirm that and get back to that spot, and just knowing that this program is capable of doing that year-in, year-out is exciting."
The rest of the second round of the NCAA Tournament will wrap up on Sunday, November 17. Dates and locations for the sectional round of the tournament will be announced in the aftermath.
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