An impressive month of October has put Gustavus among the conference elite

The Gustavus Men’s Soccer team has been on a roll. The team won four of its last five matches to continue a solid month of October and improved its record to 10-3-1 overall and 6-1-0 in the MIAC.

Last Wednesday evening, the soccer team took on Augsburg College, which was 4-2-0 in the MIAC at the time. While Augsburg out-shot Gustavus throughout the match, the Gusties were able to prove their efficiency. The one shot on goal that the Gusties managed to get off was a 30-yard shot by Sophomore midfielder Ben Ikeda over the Augsburg goalkeeper’s head, landed in the back of the net. The goal in minute 77 was the only goal scored for either team, and the Gusties were able to pull off the 1-0 win and their 11th straight victory over Augsburg.

Defense was a deciding factor in the match, as the Auggies out-shot Gustavus in both halves for a 21-8 total shot advantage. The Auggies also posted an advantage in corner kicks 8-3, but were still unable to score. Sophomore Luke Strom played the entire match in the net for Gustavus, making three saves and posting his sixth shutout of the season. Strom doesn’t take all the credit for those shutouts.

“I contribute a lot of my success to the defense playing in front of my goal this year. They have been a very strong and consistent back four all year long,” said Strom.

The defensive play by the Gusties has been outstanding this year, not allowing more than a goal in each of the last four matches and not more than two goals in a match all season.

“Another huge help for me this year is the additional training the goalkeepers receive at least once a week in the morning from our goalkeeper coach. He really helps when it comes to increasing technical ability and quickness,” said Strom.

Following the win over Augsburg, the Gusties hosted Bethel on Saturday, hoping to improve their ranks within the MIAC once again. The Gusties seemed to control play in the first half and were able to build a shot total advantage of 8-1 by the half. Bethel goalkeeper Nick Kanto played well and was able to make three first-half saves and keep Gustavus out of the net in the first half.

Once again, the Gusties kept with the trend of late goal scoring by the Gusties was present, as Junior forward Brett VanderStreek gave the team the 1-0 lead with a header off Senior Flynn Stewart-Franzen in minute 80. With increasingly tough pressure from the Gusties, it was only a matter of time before the floodgates opened up.

Sophomore midfielder Max Malmquist was able to do that only five minutes later, scoring on a one-timer off of a bullet pass by VanderStreek. Malmquist’s goal gave Gustavus a 2-0 lead, where it would stay for the remainder of the match.

The Gusties posted advantages in total shot (25-3) as well as corner kicks (7-4) in the match. Strom also picked up his seventh shutout in goal without having to save a shot. Regarding the Gusties late goal-scoring trend, Junior midfielder Skylar Schulz said, “Against Bethel we dominated play and finally got a couple of late goals after having a bunch of chances throughout the game.” He went on to add, “Overall, I would say we are just finding ways to win games, and lately that has meant finding the back of the net towards the end of  games.”

The Gusties are tight in the race for the top spot in the MIAC. The Carleton Knights are atop the leader board with a conference record of 6-1-1, which comes out to a total of 13 points. Right behind Carleton are the Gusties, who are sitting at 6-1-0 (12 points) in league play.

“There are a lot of good teams in the MIAC and we’re constantly battling with all of them. Every contest is a challenge,” said VanderStreek. “There are six teams within five points of one another right now in the conference. With the small amount of games remaining, we are going to have to keep our momentum heading into the playoffs.”

Head coach Larry Zelenz seems very confident with the recent playoff push of the Gusties, stating, “We continue to hold strong defensively and have a good team focus on that aspect of the game. We have learned that we can be patient and not let ourselves get frustrated if goals don’t come early, and increasingly have the confidence that we can win games in the later stages. That is going to serve us well in the last stretch of tough games through the end of the season.”

This past Wednesday, the Gusties and their #4 ranking in the West region went to Decorah, IA, to take on Luther College. In a game the Gusties couldn’t manage to get on the board in, Luther found the back of the net twice to upset the previously surging Gusties 2-0.

Gustavus will resume MIAC play Saturday Oct. 18 at St. Olaf