Storm hold off Wartburg to reach semifinals

INDIANOLA, Iowa -- For the fourth time in five seasons, the Simpson men's soccer team will play in the American Rivers Conference Tournament Semifinals. The third-seeded Storm held off sixth-seeded Wartburg inside Buxton Stadium in a 1-0 contest Saturday night.

Simpson (16-3-2) preserved an early 1-0 lead for almost 80 minutes to keep its season alive to reach the semifinals for the sixth time under head coach Rick Isaacson's guidance. The Storm have now hit 16 wins for the third time in program history, which ties the most in a season with the 1999 and 2000 squads. 

Darius Doswell tallied his ninth goal of the season in the 12th minute coming off a free kick. The senior's shot sailed a little high to hit the crossbar, but the ricochet flew into the goalie's back and into the net for the game-winner.

Both teams played even throughout the match as the Knights (8-8-2) held a slight 11-10 tilt in the shot category. Doswell's aim was on point all night as all four of his shot attempts were on target to lead the squad.

Jake Potratz secured the team's 11th shutout of the season with two saves at goal for the Storm. Brendan Owings, Ricardo Ibarra, Trevor Fuccio and Connor Robson all patrolled the back line to keep Wartburg off the scoreboard.

Notes
• Doswell is now tied for first on the team with three game-winning goals and now has five for his career.
• The Storm are now 5-1-2 in their last eight contests with the Knights and take a slim 15-14-3 advantage in the all-time series.
• Tonight's shot output ties a season-low of 10, which happened in Simpson's 2-0 win against Wis.-Platteville in the team's third match of the season.

Up Next
The Storm head to Loras on Wednesday for the A-R-C Tournament Semifinal match. The Duhawks defeated Simpson 4-0 on Oct. 19 in the previous matchup.