#11 Men’s Soccer advances to second round of NCAA Tournament with PK victory over Mount Aloysius (Pa.)

By Wes Mayberry

| NCAA Tournament site |

ADA — The Ohio Northern men's soccer team defeated Mount Aloysius (Pa.) on penalty kicks, 4-2, in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament on a snowy Saturday afternoon at Kerscher Stadium.

ONU and MAC played to a 1-1 draw through regulation and a pair of 10-minute overtime periods.

The No. 11 Polar Bears (13-3-4) advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and will play No. 15 North Park (Ill.) on Sunday at 3 p.m. at Kerscher Stadium.

The Mounties end their season with a record of 10-7-3.

Both teams scored in the second half of regulation.

Senior Aaron Shelton (Ortonville, Mich./Brandon) put the Polar Bears up 1-0 with a goal in the 58th minute on assists from sophomores Brenden Gervers (Grand Blanc, Mich.) and Ryan Parker (Lexington).

The Mounties knotted the score at 1-all in the 84th minute, when Louis Bez found Rhett Pletcher for a goal that ultimately sent the game to overtime.

Northern out-shot MAC 6-2 in the 20 minutes of overtime as neither team was able to break the deadlock.

After an unsuccessful first round of PKs for both teams, the Polar Bears and Mounties found the back of the net in the second and third rounds.

Fifth-year senior Bryan Kern (Rocky River) was successful for ONU in the fourth round, putting the Polar Bears ahead 3-2 thanks to an unsuccessful attempt from the Mounties' Liam Craw.

Parker sealed the deal for Northern with a successful PK in the fifth round.

Shelton and sophomore William Shaffer (Galena/St. Francis DeSales) tallied the other PK goals for ONU.

In addition to making some important stops during the PKs, senior goalkeeper Josh Ellis (Whitehouse/Anthony Wayne) tallied three saves in 110 minutes of action for Northern.

Luke Priestley made seven saves for MAC.

The Polar Bears out-shot the Mounties 22-7 in the game and finished with a 16-5 edge in corner kicks.