Rafa Hyde
Mike Gallagher
0
West Chester WCU (8-7-4, 5-4-1)
1
Winner Gannon GAN (14-2-3, 7-0-3)
West Chester WCU
(8-7-4, 5-4-1)
0
Final
1
Gannon GAN
(14-2-3, 7-0-3)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 OT 1 F
West Chester WCU 0 0 0 0
Gannon GAN 0 0 1 1

Game Recap: Men's Soccer | | Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Hyde's Overtime Goal Sends Golden Knights into PSAC Championship Match

Gannon defeats West Chester 1-0 in PSAC Semifinals

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – Rafa Hyde (São José dos Campos, Brazil) scored the lone goal of the match 23 seconds into overtime to give the Gannon men's soccer team a 1-0 win over West Chester in Friday's PSAC Semifinal match at Bloomsburg.

The victory sends the Golden Knights, the top seed in the Western Division, into Sunday's PSAC Championship game against the host Huskies, the top seed out of the Eastern Division. Bloomsburg and W3 Slippery Rock tied 1-1 after two overtime periods. The Huskies advanced with a 5-4 advantage in penalty kicks. The championship match gets underway at 1:00 p.m. at Steph Pettit Stadium.

Gannon is in search of its first PSAC championship. This is the fourth time the Golden Knights have advanced to the conference title game, but they have come up empty the first three times. The Golden Knights last played in the championship game in 2021 suffering a 2-0 loss to Millersville. Gannon also appeared in the PSAC Championship game in 2017 and 2019.

Head coach Billy Colton's team improved to 14-2-3 while West Chester, the PSAC East third seed, dropped to 8-7-4. The PSAC champion will receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament. The playoff field will be announced on Monday.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Neither team was able to score over the first 90 minutes although Gannon a had a decided advantage in shots. That was not the case in overtime, however. The Golden Knights had possession of the ball to start the extra period. They would score without West Chester ever touching the ball.

Carl Dorner (Skødstrup, Sweden) ended up with the ball in the left corner. He fed Sverre Orten (Orsta, Norway/Aalesund vgs) whose one-touch pass from the end line found Rafa Hyde (São José dos Campos, Brazil) in front of the left side of the goal. The sophomore from Brazil had the right foot touch to beat WCU goalkeeper Jaden Howard. The score came just 23 seconds into overtime as the Golden Knights mobbed Hyde.

BY THE NUMBERS
The goal for Rafa Hyde (São José dos Campos, Brazil) was his 10th of the season. Orten entered the match ranked among the Division II leaders in assists and now has 13 on the season. That is tied for seventh in a season. Dorner now has two assists.

Gannon held a 24-14 advantage in shots, including 9-0 in shots on goal. Gannon goalkeeper Andre Moraes (Sao Bernardo do Campo, Brazil/Colegio Singular) recorded his ninth shutout of the season, tied for second in a season. He did not register a save.

The Golden Knights defeated West Chester 2-0 earlier in the season at West Chester. Gannon and Bloomsburg last met on the pitch in 2022. The match was on the very same field in the PSAC Semifinals, with the Huskies eliminating Gannon 3-2.
 
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