The Lake Forest College men’s soccer team has had a successful season so far and is not stopping now. They finished off October with an overall record of 11-7 and 8-1-0 in the Midwest Conference. With such a season, the Foresters worked their way to a 2016 Midwest Conference Championship.
Their success this season will allow the team to compete in the Midwest Conference Tournament with home field advantage to see which team advances to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Tournament. The first round of the NCAA tournament is this Saturday, November.
“Winning the Midwest Conference was a huge accomplishment for us,” Colin Jackson ’17 said. “It was one of the main goals we had coming into the season in order to clinch home-field advantage for post season. Also, being a senior, our class has done a great job leading the younger players and showing them how strong and important our winning tradition is will pay off in future seasons.”
The men’s soccer team defeated Ripon College with a score of 9-0 on October 30 to clinch the Conference title and end their regular season competition.
Seton Trostle ’18 scored three goals for the Foresters in their win over Ripon. “We started out with high pressure and intensity and put away the chances we had,” Trostle said. “We continued to keep the press on after scoring a couple goals and did not let up. We knew that game was the game that meant winning Conference, and that was all the motivation we needed.”
As of press time, the team moved on to host the four-team Conference tournament to see who will move on to the national level. The four teams are Lake Forest College, Grinnell College, Knox College, and St. Norbert College.
“As seniors, this is our second regular season title and this is our third time playing in the Midwest Conference Tournament with hopes that we will play in our third trip to the NCAA Tournament, but we need to carry this momentum through the MWC Tournament and into the NCAA’s if we really want to make a splash,” captain Ellis Rutili ’17 said.
Jackson said the team has a strong game plan that the players are confident with and committed to. “We are coming off some great performances in our last few games, and if we can keep building this momentum, I believe we will have an excellent post-season run,” he said.
