Crusaders Advance to National Championships
Soccer becomes first MU men's team ever to reach final step

Nov. 7, 2007

		The MU men's soccer team poses with the Region VIII championship trophy following its 1-0 win at Goshen Wednesday night.

BOX SCORE  |  PHOTO GALLERY

GOSHEN, Ind. – The Madonna University men's soccer team made history Wednesday night, going on the road and defeating Goshen College (Ind.) 1-0 to claim its first NAIA Region VIII championship.  The win makes the 2007 Crusaders the first men's team in MU athletics history to advance to the NAIA National Championships.

The Crusaders scored just over 11-minutes into the contest when Doron Drai took a Makesi Lewis pass near the front of the Goshen goal box and deposited a shot to the top left corner of the net, for a 1-0 lead.

MU would bunker down and hang on through a flurry of Goshen shots down the stretch, including a great opportunity by Maple Leaf forward Tony Janzen, who misfired on a shot with under four minutes to play that would have tied the game.

Senior goal keeper Kris Lyons stood tall in the final five minutes, making a pair of critical saves down the stretch to help cement the win.

The victory sends MU to the NAIA National Championships in Olathe, Kansas beginning next week.  The 49th annual men's soccer tournament will run November 14-20 at the College Boulevard Activities Center in Olathe.

MU will await their draw for the opening round of the tournament later in
the week.

NAIA NATIONAL TOURNAMENT INFO

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Matt Fancett, Assistant AD - Media Relations
(734) 432-5610