The Wildcats (19-6-1), who were ranked 11th in the final NAIA national poll, got on the scoreboard first in the 28th minute when Kyle Joern scored to give Indiana Wesleyan a 1-0 lead that it maintained through the end of the first half.

Then, in the 58th minute, the third-seeded Cougars (14-5-3) equalized when senior forward Steve Lesmes sent a cross from the right side to freshman midfielder Cody Snouffer (left) on the left. Snouffer fired a shot into the back of the net to knot the score at 1-1 as he notched his fourth goal of the season and his third in the past four matches. The assist was also the team-leading 11th of the year for Lesmes.

The score remained that way until the 63rd minute when junior forward Adam Worrall (right) took a pass from Snouffer and fired a shot inside the near post for what would prove to be the game-winning goal - his second of the tournament. It was also Worrall’s team-leading 10th goal in just 12 matches as he missed half the season due to an injury.

Sophomore goalkeeper Alex Stout and the MVNU back line proved up to the task from there as the Cougars held on for the victory to close out the year. Stout registered three saves, while Indiana Wesleyan’s goalie Spenser Lang stopped eight shots. MVNU out-shot the Wildcats 13-7 with a 10-4 advantage in shots on goal. Corner kicks were even at 4-4.

“This tournament was really a great finish to a memorable season,” said MVNU head coach Paul Furey. “We played well all year long and probably played our best soccer down here in the (NCCAA) tournament. It’s a great thing when you come to a national championship and not lose a match. We were 2-0-1 and really just a shootout from being in the championship match and fighting for a national championship. Our guys can be really proud of their effort and the type of soccer that they played. We earned a great deal of respect for the way we conducted ourselves. We represented our university and our faith in a great way.”

“So many guys played well, but Adam and Chris (Mast) (left) both had fantastic tournaments,” said Furey, referring to the Cougars’ two honorees on the NCCAA All-National Tournament Team. “Adam had two game-winning goals and Chris, along with Scott (Spangler) and some other guys, really worked so hard to help us control the play in the midfield in all three of our matches. I felt like for the most part we always had a better run of play with maybe the semifinal match (against Palm Beach Atlantic) being a more even match. Beating an NAIA ranked team in Indiana Wesleyan and the top-ranked team in the NCCAA was a very sweet way to end our season.”

The match marked the final contest for six MVNU seniors as Lesmes, Isaac Bush, Matt Wilging, Aaron Caluza, Adam Pelak, and Seth Taylor wrapped up their careers. “This was such a great way for our seniors to wrap up their careers here,” said Furey. “I know that their teammates think so much of them and have really come to appreciate and respect them and what they bring to this team. What we did today, we played in a way that we wanted to have our seniors go out on a high note.”

“Unfortunately, four of the seniors were sidelined with injuries today,” said Furey. “However, Isaac gave us some quality minutes today, and Steve played as good as he’s played all year setting up two goals today and really having an overall good tournament. I was really happy for our seniors to have such a great finale to their careers, and I think that the way we played today really demonstrated our love and appreciation to them.”