×

Late heroics lift Knights past Storm

By Jeremy Behnke

Journal Sports Editor

NEW ULM – With everything on the line, Martin Luther College freshman forward/midfielder Joe Graumann just wanted to be positioned correctly in case his opportunity came up again.

Graumann got that opportunity and just happened to be lined up correctly. He headed a pass from Ethan Schultz and it went to the right side, past the Crown goalkeeper as MLC won the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference men’s soccer playoff game 3-2 in double overtime.

The win means MLC (11-8-1), the No. 4 seed in the UMAC playoffs, will battle the No. 1 seed St. Scholastica at 11 a.m. on Wednesday in Duluth.

“I was just in the right place at the right time, it was a good shot, but I was just right there,” Graumann said. “I hit the ball and I looked up and the whole right side of the goal was open, that’s where the ball went. It was just awesome.”

MLC coach Paul Koelpin was more than happy with how his team responded to Crown’s second-half goal.

“Crown’s a very, very good team, it was a pretty even game when we played at Crown and this was a pretty even game too,” the coach said. “They’ve got some very dangerous guys on the front side so you have to constantly be aware of where they are. If you miss one touch, if they get past you something can happen.

“What I love is how our guys responded, instead of going down, we raised our level,” Koelpin said. “We noticed that we were kind of struggling at the beginning of the second half and all of a sudden they score and we started getting momentum going. That’s big.”

Graumann finished the game with two goals. He scored MLC’s first goal on an assist from Josh Koelpin at 17:55 in the first half.

Crown tied the game on a goal by Storm Heyer at 30:20. MLC responded about three minutes later after Erich Osterman scored on an assist from Jacob Shepard on a corner kick.

The teams played a physical second half, something that wasn’t expected. The wet field conditions made it difficult for the teams to get traction, a completely different experience from when the teams met the first time on Crown’s field.

“The first time we played them, it was on turf so it was tactical and we weren’t too pushy, but out here, I guess when the stakes are high, it’s a physical game,” Graumann said. “I think that it definitely helps that we play a lot of games on grass.”

Crown tied the game in the second half on Sam Eckmann’s goal at 58:19. The teams went into the first overtime without a goal but Crown had a key chance in the first overtime but missed out.

It didn’t take long for Graumann in the second overtime as he scored with 9:16 left. Graumann now has a team-high eight goals this year.

The Knights get the No. 1 seed St. Scholastica on Wednesday. It won’t be easy because MLC may be without two starters because of injury.

“The first game was real exciting, we couldn’t keep the lead but it was a great game and it was fun playing,” Graumann said.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper?
   

Starting at $4.38/week.

Subscribe Today