Men's Soccer

November 18, 2007

Trinity Headed to Semifinals After Win at Washington

St. Louis, Missouri - The Tiger men's soccer team is headed back to the NCAA Semifinals for the third time since 2002 after defeating Washington (MO) University 2-1 in the quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon.

Trinity (22-0) got off to a strong start, taking a 1-0 lead in the eighth minute that held up through the first half.  In the second, the Tigers got an insurance goal that would prove to be crucial for the end of the match.

With just under five minutes left, the hometown Bears converted a header on a free kick to make it 2-1, and then put Trinity under tremendous pressure over the final minutes as they tried to equalize.  The Tigers were up to the task, though, even fighting off a dangerous corner kick in the waning seconds to preserve the win.

Tyrone Petrakis hit the eventual game-winner in the 69th minute of play, knocking in a loose ball in front of the Washington net.  Petrakis also hit yesterday's game-winner in a 2-1 victory over UW-Oshkosh, and now has five game-winners on the season.  That ties him with Patrick Floeck and Robert C'deBaca for the team lead.  Petrakis now has 10 goals this season to tie for second on the team.

Kyle Altman converted a corner kick from Noe Casanova for the first goal of the day, scoring his fifth goal of the season.  David Steinberg recorded four saves on the day, also coming out and making a nice play on the final corner from Washington. 

The win sets up a much-anticipated matchup between Trinity and Messiah (PA) College.  Messiah has won four of the last five Division III National Championships, with Trinity winning in 2003.  The teams have never met, making this semifinal a very interesting matchup.  The Division III Semifinals and Final will be held at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.  The semifinals will be held on Friday, with the championship game on Saturday.