Tommies fend off Wis.-Superior 4-3, advance to second round

 

The St. Thomas men’s soccer team (10-0 MIAC, 20-1 overall) defeated Wisconsin-Superior (10-1-1 UMAC, 14-6-2 overall) Saturday 4-3 in St. Paul to advance to the second round of the NCAA playoffs, which it will play without goalkeeper Aidan Hogan, who received a red card and a one-game suspension.

Wis.-Superior jumped out to 1-0 in the 14th minute after midfielder Adrian Leal found the back of the net for the Yellowjackets. The goal ignited the large Wis.-Superior fan section into a frenzy.

The Tommies wasted no time, and thirty seconds later forward Tyler Oliver answered with a goal of his own to knot it up at 1-1. Just five minutes later, Oliver scored again to give the Tommies the lead.

“We needed to answer back fast cause they got some momentum from that first goal,” Oliver said. “It really helped to set the game in our favor.”

St. Thomas added another goal in the 27th minute, this time from Will Kidd, to make it 3-1.

However, with just four minutes remaining in the opening half, Tommie goalkeeper Aidan Hogan was ejected with a red card. The Yellowjackets had a breakaway with no Tommie defenders in sight. Hogan stepped up to stop the rush when he tripped up the opposing player.

Hogan was escorted off the field and the Tommies were forced to play the remainder of the game a man down. Replacing Hogan was backup goalkeeper Troy Louwagie.

Just over a minute into the second half, Wis.-Superior got one past Louwagie to bring them within one goal.

In the 55th minute, forward Justin Oliver joined his brother Tyler in the scoring column to give St. Thomas a 4-2 advantage.

Justin Oliver intercepted a Yellowjacket pass and found himself all alone with the goalkeeper.

“He just kicked it right in my chest, and I was alone with the keeper,” Justin Oliver said. “It was pretty fortunate.”

Wis.-Superior never went away. With just over five minutes left in the game, Leal scored his second goal and reenergized the Yellowjacket attack.

Louwagie was tested several times in the closing minutes but fended off a feisty Wis-Superior effort.

“He played great,” coach Jon Lowery said. “That is a really, really big ask to come into an NCAA tournament game when you’ve played about zero minutes all year.”

Louwagie, in just his second appearance all season, played over 49 minutes.

“(I was) a little nervous,” Louwagie said. “But when I got on the field, I was just ready.”

Louwagie will have to stay ready. He will start Sunday afternoon as Hogan will serve his one-game suspension.

The Tommies are set to take on the winner of the Loras and Cal-Lutheran game. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday.

 

 

 

Brady Halbmaier can be reached at halb2084@stthomas.edu