NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Carleton College men's soccer team earned a hard-fought 2-1 vic-tory over St. Olaf College in their MIAC quarterfinal matchup.
Tarek Bos-Shadi (Jr./Kankakee, Ill./Bradley) scored the game-winning goal late in the first half and clinched a semifinal appearance for the home team.
Playing one another for the second time in eight days, this contest followed a similar script as in years past. Counting this game, 10 of the last 11 meetings between the Northfield rivals have been decided by one goal or less with the Knights going 8-2-1 in those matchups.
Over the course of Tuesday's tilt, Carleton (14-4-1) outshot St. Olaf (9-10) by a 17-7 margin, held a 11-3 advantage in terms of shots on goal, and a 5-3 edge in corner kicks.
"Any playoff game is a difficult game, and it is even more so when you play your local rival," said Carleton head coach
Bob Carlson. "St. Olaf gave us everything we could handle today, and I'm proud of our guys and the way that they composed themselves."
Both teams came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, looking for the opening goal. Farid Sani nearly did so for the visitors in the fifth minute when a St. Olaf counter attack ended with him chipping the ball over
Aaron Forman (Jr./Los Angeles, Calif./Windward School), the onrushing Carleton keeper
Thankfully, Knight defenders were able to chase the shot down and clear it away before the ball could cross the line.
In the 14th minute, the Knights got on the scoresheet.
Marco da Cunha (So./San Francisco, Calif./San Francisco Univ.) crossed the ball into the center of the box from the right wing, and
David Rubin (Jr./Ann Arbor, Mich./Greenhills School) redirected it into the left corner of the goal. It was the first goal of the year for Rubin, who had missed eight games due to injury.
"David was really good today," noted Carlson. "It is great to have him back in our lineup."
Moments later da Cunha nearly added to Carleton's lead, but his flicked effort rattled against the right post, and his ensuing effort off the rebound was blocked by a defender.
After weathering this storm, the Oles again pushed forward with a dangerous counterattack in the 35th minute. Max Eisenfeld sent a low pass to top of the box, and Will Douglas' shot took a deflection off a Knights defender and rolled into the right side of the net.
As the game trickled into the 43
rd minute, the Knights earned a free kick in a dangerously close position on the left-flank. Little did anyone know that this was the beginning of the most crucial sequence of the match.
Kamran Kelly (Sr./St. Paul, Minn./St. Paul Central) sent a perfectly weighted cross into the box, which
Justin Crawmer (Fy./Urbandale, Iowa/Waukee) headed towards the goal. Ole goalkeeper Hamza Osman made the save on a hop but was unable to control the shot and spilled the ball back into the box.
Tonny Aton (So./Nairobi, Kenya/Lukenya) was there for Carleton and tried to poke the ball inside the left post. Osman, laying on the ground was able to recover and punched away not one but two shots by Aton on the doorstep.
It was at this moment that Bos-Shadi pounced on the loose ball and coolly slotted home the game-winner for his second goal of the season.
The second-half was not an easy 45 minutes for Carleton, as the Oles pushed forward looking for an equalizer. The Knight defense held firm throughout and allowed St. Olaf to attempt only a single shot during the period, ensuring the 2-1 final score.
UP NEXT FOR THE KNIGHTS: Carleton has a quick turnaround and hits the road to face No. 2 seed University of St. Thomas in the conference semifinal. Kickoff is set for 11:30 a.m.
