Ottumwa, IA – Second-seeded Indian Hills Men's Soccer upended No. 3 seed Iowa Lakes Community College 2-0 in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Men's Soccer Region XI Semifinals on Tuesday. The Warriors earn a berth in the championship match on Saturday.
The Warriors used a goal in both halves to eliminate the Lakers from the postseason and secure a spot in the NJCAA Region XI Championship match for the first time since 2017. Indian Hills will travel to top-seeded and No. 2 nationally ranked Iowa Western Community College at 2:00 PM on Saturday, October 29 in Council Bluffs, IA.
Freshman Daniele Verdirosi (Rome, Italy/Araniti) scored his nation-leading 18th goal in the first half to put the Warriors on the board before a late goal in the second half from sophomore Kevin Mejias (Fermo, Italy/Montegiorgio Calcio) put the game out of reach. Sophomore Matteo Scarduzio (San Secondo Parmense, Italy / Fabio Bocchialini) earned the shutout in net for the Warriors to earn his fifth victory of the year and push Indian Hills to 11-8-1 overall this season.
The victory is the first postseason win over the Lakers in program history for the Warriors in four matches. The two sides split the regular season series this year with one victory apiece before Indian Hills pitched the shutout on Tuesday.
With the win, the Warriors will now look to secure its first NJCAA Region XI Championship since defeating Iowa Western in 2017, a win that propelled the Warriors to its first and only national tournament appearance. The Reivers have since eliminated Indian Hills from the last two postseasons, including a thrilling 2-1 overtime victory over the Warriors last season. Indian Hills posted an 0-1-1 record this year in the regular season vs. Iowa Western, snapping the Reivers' 14-match winning streak on October 12.
Tuesday's match saw the Warriors apply pressure from the opening kick, a strategy that led to a goal less than 12 minutes into the match. With Indian Hills attacking, Mejias played a cross from the right side that deflected to the foot of Verdirosi. The freshman provided a quick strike that beat the Laker defense and found the back of the net for the initial lead.
Scarduzio stopped three shots in the first 45 minutes of play as the Warrior defense, anchored by sophomore Andres Valencia (Bogota, Colombia/Cendi) clamped down on the Lakers and took the 1-0 halftime lead.
Both sides provided chances in the second half, but a stringent Warrior defense maintained the one-goal advantage. Indian Hills eventually broke free in the 87th minute with Iowa Lakes playing a man down. Ron Becker (Tubingen, Germany/Evangelisches Firstwald Gymnasium) delivered a through ball to Mejias who beat his defender at the top of the box and buried a low-lining shot to the left corner for the insurance goal.
The assist was Becker's 11th of the year, tied for the most in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference (ICCAC) while Mejias recored his 11th goal of the year, second on the team only to Verdirosi. Verdirosi's 18 goals lead all NJCAA DI Men's Soccer players while the freshman is also tied for first with 78 shots and ranks fourth with 42 total points.
Scarduzio finished the afternoon with four saves to pick up his second career shutout for the Warriors. The win is also the sophomore's second postseason victory after winning last season's opening round match vs. Iowa Central Community College.
Iowa Western used a 2-0 victory over No. 5 seed Iowa Central on Tuesday to advance to Saturday's championship.
Stay tuned for more information on how to view Saturday's championship match.
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