TYLER, TEXAS

If Reiver Men's Soccer had proceeded to the NJCAA National Tournament in the traditional manner, Wednesday morning's game may have been a semi-final or finals match-up.  Instead, the 8th seeded Reivers, number two in the last six weeks of the Top 20 polls, faced off against top overall seed and top-ranked Monroe as an at-large entry to the 2019 National Tournament in pool play.  Both teams entered the match with shutout wins over Muskegon with the Reivers holding the goal differential advantage, needing only a tie with the Monroe to advance.

In the match's first 45 minutes, the game was all anyone could ask for, with both teams being turned away by excellent defense on both sides and outstanding goal-keeping.  With 30 minutes to play, however, the Mustangs Daniel Haegler caught fire.  Reivers' goalkeeper Jassem Koleilat had to attack after a save and Haegler curled it into the frame's left side to put Monroe up 1-0.  Head Coach Mike Brown's first Reiver squad attacked to find the equalizer as the match continued, but a contested call led to a free-kick and Haegler's 2nd goal of the match as he fired it past the Reiver D and Koleilat into the right side for a 2-0 advantage.  With time dwindling, Monroe took advantage of a hurried Reiver attack to find the frame twice more, including Haegler's 3rd of the match.

Iowa Western finishes the season at 16-1-1 and returned to the National Tourney for the first time since 2016.

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