Flurry of a Finish

WATERTOWN, Wis. -- The Sabercats almost pulled off the upset of their season this afternoon, as they fell 3-5 to Wisconsin Lutheran College in the regular-season finale.

The Warriors were just two points shy of sharing the regular-season title for the Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference, and the Sabercats gave them a scare in the final 10 minutes.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 3-5 Wisconsin Lutheran
• Venue: Maranatha Baptist University
• Location: Watertown, Wisconsin
• Attendance: 143
• Record: MBU (4-10-1), WLC (10-3-5) 

STORY

The Warriors were the better team in the opening minutes, as Jason Cano - the program's all-time leading scorer - was the danger man up top for Wisconsin Lutheran. But against the run of play, Grant Kirchner ran onto a long pass from Joshua Wright, then cut to the inside for a shot at goal. Kirchner's shot caromed off the post and out to Isaac Schmidt, who buried the rebound into the top corner to put the Sabercats the unlikely lead.

Just five minutes later, though, Cano hit his first of the day with a well-struck free kick from 25 yards. Just like that, the Warriors had equalized, and they went ahead in the 24th minute when Cano converted a penalty kick. Victor Moreno slotted in a third goal for the Warriors just before the halftime break, and the Sabercats were in need of a breather despite some chances at the other end of the field.

Wisconsin Lutheran had their typical halftime lead, but the Sabercats were right in it.

Cano scored another penalty kick in the 59th minute, a fitting time for his program-leading 59th career goal, and things looked to be wrapped up for the Warriors. Maranatha had forced the visitors to score from set pieces, but goalscoring chances for the Sabercats looked sparse at the other end of the field.

But things changed in the 85th minute when Aaron Jones performed a trademark run through the Warriors back line to poke in a finish. At 4-2 the lead looked suddenly fragile, and the Sabercats pounced on their opportunity when Kirchner earned a penalty kick just a minute and half later. Braeden Hansel shouldered the responsibility in his final home game for Maranatha, and the senior captain made no mistake when he slammed his shot into the back of the net to jolt new life into the already spirited contest.

The two-goal spree seemed to poke the bear, as the Warriors responded just 30 seconds later to make it 5-3. Cano's pass found the feet of Joseph Raasch, who calmy converted his one-time finish from 10 yards away.

All in all, it was an upset on paper despite the loss, as the Sabercats were just one of two teams all season to score three goals on the NACC mainstays. 

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Maranatha Starters: 1- Brock, 2- T. Holloway (C), 5- Jones, 8- Davis, 9- Wright (C), 10- Schmidt, 11- Beachell, 12- Greene, 16- Kirchner, 21- Hansel (C), 23- Perkins

STATS

• Shot count: Maranatha 7-23 Wisconsin Lutheran
• Schmidt: 4th goal this season
• Jones: Leads Maranatha with 10 goals this season
• Hansel: 7th goal this season - a career-high
• Brad Brock: 1st career start, made 8 saves
• Last time: Maranatha fell to Wisconsin Lutheran 3-0 on September 30, 2017
• Series: Maranatha currently leads the all-time series 21-20-0

OPPONENTS

• Wisconsin Lutheran competes in the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NCAA-Dlll)
• Wisconsin Lutheran is currently ranked No. 3 in the NACC with a 6-2-3 conference record
• Wisconsin Lutheran finished the 2021 season with a record of 7-11-0
• Wisconsin Lutheran did not qualify for their conference tournament last season (2021) finishing with a conference record of 5-7-0

NEXT

The Sabercats will travel to Minneapolis, Minnesota to play in the NCCAA Regional Tournament. Details TBD. Follow along at mbusabercats.com/schedule.