The Flying Dutchmen (16-4-1) advance to the semifinals of the regional tournament to be hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Hope College will play the host Titans (13-3-2) Friday at 2:30 p.m. EST. The teams met earlier this season with Hope College prevailing 2-1. UW-Oshkosh had a first round bye.

Energized by an enthusiastic home crowd of nearly 500 fans, the Flying Dutchmen scored four first half goals against a Dominican University team that was making its first appearance in the NCAA Championship.

Senior Bryant Loomis scored just three minutes into the game on a chip pass. Assists were credited to both Steve Lepper and Kevney Dugan. Freshmen scored Hope's next two goals. Devin McNeil scored at 19:40 with an assist credited to Eric Plewka and then at 23:22 Geoffrey Meyer kicked an unassisted goal.

Loomis came back with his team-leading 13th goal of the year at 41:02 with an assist credited to Tim Kelly.

Hope ended with a 12-7 advantage in shots at goal. Senior goalkeeper Marcus Voss had three saves in gaining his ninth save of the season and the 37th of his career.

The Flying Dutchmen have tied a school record for victories in a season (16). Hope College is 10-0 on its home field.

Hope's greatest success in seven previous NCAA tournament appearances came in 1994 when the Flying Dutchmen advanced to the quarterfinals before losing to UW-Oshkosh in a shootout after the teams played scoreless through regulation and four overtime periods.

His Falcons (17-3-2) had experienced their longest drought of the season before Steve Dziatkiewicz sent home the winner at 1:08 of the second overtime period to give Concordia University a 1-0 win over St. Norbert College (14-4-1) in the first round of the NCAA Division III Championship held Wednesday (Nov. 13) in Mequon.

Saleska’s squad had been scoreless through 110 minutes before defeating Edgewood College 5-4 in a shootout last week in the semifinals of the Lake Michigan Conference Tournament semi-final. Then Concordia University was shut out 1-0 by Marian College in the league's tournament championship match. It had been a cumulative 320 game minutes since a Falcon shot had crossed the goal line, but none of that mattered after Dziatkiewicz’ overtime counter.

The Falcons actually fired 20 shots on goal during regulation compared to St. Norbert College's 9, but Concordia University forwards were once again victimized by an incredible goaltending performance, this time by the Green Knights' Juri Petrasz. Twice Concordia University shots rifled off the post, but a half dozen times Petrasz was able to deflect the Falcon's bullets at the last second.

The match appeared headed for the much-dreaded shootout ending when Peter Schreiber was able to control a throw in from close to the Concordia University corner and push the ball through to Dziatwiewicz, who blasted home the winner at 1:08 of overtime number two.

The crowd, certainly the largest in Concordia University soccer history, cheered both teams and surrealistically both teams came over to cheer the crowd after the contest ended. “It was just great soccer by both teams…very exciting to be part of a match like that”, opined Saleska.

The win was historic in the sense that Concordia University, only a NCAA Division III member for four years, had never hosted or won an NCAA playoff game in any sport. On Friday (Nov. 15), the Falcons face national power Wheaton College at the Kolf Sport Center Complex on the UW-Oshkosh campus. The second round contest begins at 11 a.m.

Wheaton College improves to 16-3-2 on the season while Concordia University ends its year with a 17-4-2 record.

Wheaton College took a 1-0 advantage 21:51 into the match when sophomore Nick Fichera put the ball into the net off of a header on a free kick by junior Robert Kehoe. Just before the match concluded freshman Justin Risma scored his 12th goal of the year 89:34 into the contest as he scored from 25 yards out.

Wheaton College out-shot Concordia University 15-9 on the afternoon, including a 10-3 advantage in the second half. Junior goalkeeper Pat King made three saves in recording his ninth shutout of the season. Concordia University goalkeeper Jake Banas allowed both of Wheaton College's goals and made 17 saves on Thunder shots.

This year's appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship is the 25th for Wheaton College and today's victory improves the Thunder to 31-21-1 all-time in NCAA post-season action. Wheaton College will battle Hope College (17-4-1) on Saturday (Nov. 16) in a third round match that also will be played in Oshkosh.

Concordia University concluded its first appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship and is now 1-1 all-time after today's loss and a win over St. Norbert College in first round action on Wednesday (Nov. 13).