NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The No. 12-ranked Carleton College men's soccer team was eliminated from the MIAC Playoffs, dropping a hard-fought 1-0 contest to Gustavus Adolphus College in the semifinals.
 
The second-seeded Knights (15-2-1, 8-1-1 MIAC), ranked No. 3 in the NCAA Regional Rankings, had picked up a first-round bye with their second-place finish in the regular season table, but the Gusties (10-3-6, 5-2-3 MIAC) had to beat Saint John's University in Monday's quarterfinal to advance to this game. This was Carleton's conference-record 16th consecutive trip to the MIAC Playoffs.
 
A back-and-forth first half saw chances for both sides, but no goals. Owen Johnson had the game's first shot, as the Gustie midfielder bent a shot on frame that Carleton keeper Daniel Linder saved on the dive. Carleton's best chance found Josh Zebrack flipping a 29th-minute header on goal off an Owen Flanagan cross, but Gustavus goalkeeper Wesley Sanders registered one of his nine saves. Two minutes later, Jack Knight won a ball in the box for Gustavus, and fired his shot wide as Linder stood tall to cut off the angle.
 
The second half began with both Gustavus and Carleton battling for possession in the midfield, failing to find much space to operate. Ben Pennell capped a 56th-minute Carleton move with a near post shot from 10 yards, but Sanders again made the save.
 
The 61st minute would finally find the separation between the two teams. Gustavus reserve Diego Paulin picked up the ball in the box, and Linder got down quickly to deny the attempt. However, the rebound squirmed just beyond Linder's grasp, and Gustie first year Joe Flory nipped in and poked the ball through to score the game's lone goal.
 
Carleton turned up the intensity, nearly equalizing when Justin Crawmer found Blake Jones for a close-range shot in the 65th minute. Jones had his effort turned away by a sterling save as Sanders somehow got a foot to the ball and kept it out.
 
In the final minute of the game, Pennell brought down a long ball in the box, worked himself a bit of space, but sent his shot right at Sanders. That would be the final opportunity the Knights would have, as Gustavus closed out the game to earn its spot in the conference tournament final. Either Carleton or Gustavus has taken part in every MIAC Playoff Championship game since 2017.
 
Carleton outshot Gustavus by a slim 15-13 margin, leading 9-4 in terms of shots on goal. Gustavus committed 21 fouls compared to Carleton's 11 and the visitors were shown three of the game's four yellow cards.
 
Up Next for the Knights
The Knights will have to wait and see if their name is called for 1 of the 22 at-large bids to the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Championships. The entire 64-team field for the national tournament will be revealed in the NCAA Selection Show, which will go live on NCAA.com at 2:00 p.m. EST / 1:00 p.m. CST on Monday, Nov. 6.