Jeremiah Johnson and Tadhg Walsh tallied the two Tiger (12-3-4) goals within the game’s first 10:02 of play. The Tigers made a quick transition to offense as within 20 seconds of a goal kick, Johnson corralled the ball, avoided a couple of defenders and maneuvered around Crimson Storm goalkeeper Andrej Krivokapic for his fourth goal of the season.
In the 11th minute, Walsh deflected home a corner kick from Marcos German, his fifth goal of the season, to give the Tigers the two-goal advantage. The assist gave German nine on the season to rank third in the league. The Tigers finished the first half with a 6-1 advantage in shots.
The Crimson Storm (12-4-4) drew one goal closer when Cesar Solis headed home a flick from Junior Duran in the 72nd minute. They continued to attack throughout the waning minutes but the Tigers’ Ben Dixon came up with four saves to preserve the victory and the second GAC/MIAA Championship title in program history.
The Tigers became the first No. 3 seed to win the GAC/MIAA title since Ouachita Baptist in 2018 as well as the first team to win the final on the opponent’s home field since Rogers State in 2019.
Dimitry Tchantcheu garnered Tournament MVP honors. Walsh, Harrison Bensouda, Bryce Dickerson and Mario Leal Vales made the All-Tournament Team. Krivokapic Solis and Edwin Garcia represented the Crimson Storm. Newman’s Alberto Romano and Paulo Villalobos plus Rogers State’s Declan Viljoen and Erik Hjertsson filled out the 12-man team.
The Tigers secured the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Championships. They’ll learn their opponent at 5:30 p.m. Monday during the NCAA Selection Show. The Crimson Storm and Rogers State each entered the week ranked inside the top 10 and seek at-large bids.
Get Local News!
