Mount Marty Men's Soccer Shocks #1 Northwestern in GPAC Quarterfinals Thriller! ??

The #8 seeded Mount Marty University (MMU) men's soccer team pulled off a historic upset, defeating the #1 seeded Northwestern College (Iowa) Red Raiders in the GPAC Tournament Quarterfinals on Saturday, November 1, 2025.

After a tense, scoreless battle through two overtime periods, the Lancers advanced via a penalty kick shootout, though the official box score reflects a 0-0 draw. This victory marks the first time in school history that the Mount Marty men's soccer program has reached the GPAC Tournament Semifinals.

Match Summary

The Lancers relied on a phenomenal defensive effort to hold the dominant Red Raider offense scoreless through 110 minutes of play.

• Final Score: 0-0 (MMU advances on PKs).

• Time of Play: 110 minutes (Regulation, OT, 2OT).

• MMU Record: 3-6-6 (advances to Semifinals).

• Northwestern Record: 13-2-4 (eliminated).

Defensive and Goalkeeping Heroics

The Lancers were under relentless pressure from the Northwestern offense, but the defense and goalkeeper stood firm.

• Goalkeeping Excellence: Goalkeeper Esteban Gomez was the star, recording 10 saves (9 personal saves + 1 team save) across the 110 minutes to secure the shutout.

• Shots Faced: Northwestern outshot Mount Marty by a massive margin, 34-4. The Red Raiders put 10 shots on goal, all stopped by the Lancer defense.

• Red Raider Pressure: Northwestern also earned 8 corner kicks to Mount Marty's 1, demonstrating their constant pressure in the attacking third.

Lancer Offensive Effort

While the offense was limited by the Red Raider defense, the Lancers managed to test the keeper with their few chances.

• Shots on Goal Leaders: Rylan Eide, Oliver Danzer, and Jose De Araujo each recorded one shot on goal for Mount Marty.

• Physical Play: The match was highly physical, with the teams combining for 28 fouls and 6 yellow cards. The Lancers received 5 of the 6 cards.

Mount Marty's remarkable defensive performance and historic upset victory sends them to the GPAC Tournament Semifinals they will Morningside on Friday Nov 7th at 7 PM. 

GPAC Tournament Recap:

The Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Postseason Men's Soccer Tournament opened on Saturday, November 1, 2025, with quarterfinal round action. 

In Orange City, Iowa, the eighth Seed Mount Marty advanced over top seed Northwestern on penalty kicks 5-4, after the match was played to a scoreless 0-0 score through two overtimes.  In Sioux City, City, Iowa, fourth seed Morningside won in overtime over fifth seed Dakota Wesleyan 3-2.  Morningside will host Mount Marty next Friday at 7pm in semifinal #1 in Sioux City.  On the opposite side of the bracket third seed Concordia defeated sixth seed Hastings 1-0 in overtime in Seward, Nebraska.  Seventh seed Briar Cliff defeated two seed Midland 3-2 in Fremont, Nebraska.  Concordia will host Briar Cliff on Friday at 2pm in Seward in semifinal #2.

The winner of the GPAC Tournament will advance, as the league's automatic representative, to the NAIA National Men's Soccer National Championship Opening Round (on November 20-22).  GPAC men's soccer only receives one automatic bid with eleven teams. 

The 2025 NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship will be December 1-8, at the Orange Beach Complex in Orange Beach, Alabama.

2025 Great Plains Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Postseason Tournament

Saturday, November 1, 2025

Quarterfinal Round
#8 Mount Marty 0, #1 Northwestern 0 (OT) (MMU advances on PK's 5-4)
#4 Morningside 3, #5 Dakota Wesleyan 0 (OT)
#3 Concordia 1, #6 Hastings 0 (OT)
#7 Briar Cliff 3, #2 Midland 2

Friday, November 7, 2025

Semifinal Round
#8 Mount Marty at 4 Morningside, 7pm
#7 Briar Cliff at #3 Concordia, 2pm

Tuesday, November 11, 2025

GPAC Postseason Championship
Semifinal winners at highest seed remaining, time TBA