Mustang
SOCCER SATURDAY, OCT. 30 Morningside University’s men’s and women’s soccer programs honor their Class of 2022 team members this evening, as the home regular and Great Plains Athletic Conference season comes to a close. The two classes have built upon the rich Mustangs pitch tradition. The men’s team seniors have been a part of three straight National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics national tournaments, two GPAC regular-season titles, and three conference postseason tournaments among 54 victories. The women’s group has reached the conference’s tournament in the last three seasons as part of a 40-win resume.
THE SERIES Mside has won nine straight on the women’s side and six in a row for the men’s ledger as part of the all-time annals against Dakota Wesleyan University. Head coach Tom Maxon’s men’s program hasn’t surrendered a Tigers score in the last five meetings. Despite the long skein produced by Morningside’s women’s program, five of the previous nine contests have been decided by just two goals or less.
THE MATCH-UP Senior midfielder Mortiz Lusch, who has led the men’s offensive numbers for a good share of the season, recently went into rarified career total location, eclipsing 30-goal, 30-assist, 100-point territory to become just the third Morningside player to hit point triple-digits. The senior enters the evening with 37 goals, 34 assists, and 108 points and is among the school’s career top five in many categories, including goals, game-winning goals, assists, and shots on goal. Lusch (11 goals, 30 points, 52 shots, 29 shots on goal, and three game-winning scores), sophomore midfielder Victor Beker (11 assists), and junior goalkeeper Bjarne Huth (eight wins, 58 saves, and three shutouts) are first through 16 matches. Beker needs one more assist to tie the single-season program record held by Lusch, junior forward Robin Thomala, and twice by former standout Chris Johnson. The Mustangs women’s squad has multiple digit leaders, too. Included are sophomore defender/forward Jil Hellerforth (six goals, 13 points); freshman midfielder Ebba Torgner (six assists); freshman midfielder Nathalie Larsson (46 shots, 22 shots on goal); and senior goalkeeper Sarah Finn (nine wins, 65 saves, six shutouts). Finn is one victory away from tying for fifth on the single-season standards, and she moved into the top five for singleseason shutouts in the mid-week win at College of Saint Mary.
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