[Men's Soccer] Mustangs clinch first conference title

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Sophomore midfielder Juan Maffey's golden goal four minutes into overtime knocked off sixth-ranked Grand View and clinched the first Midwest Collegiate Conference men's soccer championship in school history for Mount Mercy.

Grand View, whose only loss this year was a 2-1 decision to NAIA top-ranked Hastings (Neb.), enjoyed an early lead after Ross Alexander's goal in the fourth minute. The match was scoreless for the next 58 minutes until junior forward Sid Beck set up the equalizer by sophomore forward Josip Druzijanic to tie the match at 1-1.

Despite playing a man down for the final 14 minutes of regulation and overtime, the Mustangs attacked the Viking defense hoping to catch a break. Mount Mercy had its chances but couldn't convert until Maffey broke through the Grand View backfield and beat two defenders plus goalkeeper Alex Frank for the clinching goal. Frank finished with seven saves, while Mustang senior Josh Putz stopped eight shots in his seventh win of the season.

The Mustangs (9-5-2, 7-1-0 MCC) and Vikings (14-2-1, 7-1-0 MCC) share the regular season conference championship, but Mount Mercy earns the top seed in the MCC Tournament with their first-ever win over Grand View and first-ever victory over a top-10 team.

Mount Mercy wraps up the regular season with a non-conference match at Culver-Stockton (Mo.) on Monday at 3:00 p.m. in Canton, Mo. The MCC Tournament gets underway next weekend with quarterfinal action on Sunday, Oct. 30. The top-seeded Mustangs host eighth-seeded Iowa Wesleyan, and the start time will be determined by noon on Monday.