The Kansas City Roos men’s soccer team has advanced to the Summit League Championship match.
On Saturday, the Roos took on Oral Roberts in what was essentially a play-in game for the final tournament spot.
While the Golden Eagles led in a number of statistics, including total shots, corner kicks, and possession time, the Roos relentless play made sure Kansas City came out on top.
After Oral Roberts opened the scoring almost 10 minutes into the game, freshman defender Wesley Cribb found the back of the net for the first time this season to even the game. Assists on the goal were given to sophomore midfielder Miguel Fernandez and senior midfielder Julien Le Bourdoulous.
With only 30 minutes of play left, the match was still tied. That would quickly change as only 50 seconds later, sophomore forward Jeremy Francou found a lane and scored his third goal of the season.
“The team is very strong, very confident,” Francou said. “Even if we concede a goal, we can score. We can keep winning like we do.”
Even though Francou’s goal would go down as the final score of the match, the remainder was not without action.
Senior goalkeeper Brandon McGaugh put up a career-high-tying seven saves to ensure his team advanced to the conference title game. Four of the saves came in the second half.
“I was seeing the ball well,” McGaugh said. “I wanted to give my team the chance to win. Luckily they scored two goals and we got the win.”
The Roos win marked win 11 for the team. That number is the most for a Roos men’s soccer team since the 12-win 2001 campaign.
Kansas City is now tied for second in the NCAA in total goals (48), in second for total points (143), and fifth in total assists (49). Meanwhile, Brandon McGaugh is tied for 61st with 53 saves.
Next, the Roos compete for an automatic bid to the College Cup. The match against Denver will take place in Denver on Nov. 16 at 3 p.m. CST. Fans can stream the game through the Summit League Network via Midco Sports.
