NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Men's soccer fell in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament 3-1 to the defending national champions St. Olaf College on Saturday, Nov. 16. The Knights close the 2024 season with an overall record of 11-5-4.
 
Postgame Press Conference


Match Summary

• First Half
  • Lwings Kabula recorded the first shot of the match when he created space in the second minute for a shot on goal that was saved
  • Each side had two corner kick attempts that led to scoring chances in the first 20 minutes of play, but the score remained 0-0
    • Henry Eckert made his first save in the 17^th minute
  • The Knights were called for a foul inside the box, which resulted in a penalty kick for the Oles
    • The kick was converted to give St. Olaf a 1-0 after 24 minutes of play
  • Wartburg answered in the 34^th minute when Lwings Kabula got the ball to Flori Gembo, who beat his defender and fired a shot past the goalie to even the match a 1-1
  • St. Olaf had two late shots to retake the lead before halftime, but the score remained 1-1 at the break
• Second Half
  • St. Olaf came out of halftime firing on offense and was able to score two more goals in the first nine minutes of play of the second half to make it 3-1
  • The Knights were unable to create more scoring opportunities until late in the match when Kabula, Gembo and Andrew Valenzuela recorded shots on goal that were saved
  • St. Olaf held off the Knights for a 3-1 victory

 
Top Performers

• Flori Gembo
  • Goal
  • Three shots on goal
• Lwings Kabula
  • Assist
  • Two shots on goal
• Andrew Valenzuela
  • Two shots
  • One shot on goal

 
Notes/Streaks

• Sixth goal of the season for Gembo
  • Second during postseason play
• Knights are now 10-9 all-time against St. Olaf
  • 0-1 in NCAA Tournament matchups
• Second assist this season for Kabula
• Wartburg had an advantage in shots (21-17), shots on goal (9-8) and corner kicks (9-8)