The Knights took a gut punch last night at the hands of Mac. CarlEton went up 1-0 late with a brilliant free kick from Tashi.o only to surrender a few minutes later and then fall immediately in the overtime period. Mac were the better side as they were first to the ball, getting through tackles, and winning the aerial game. The Scots had two or three great chances to get their noses in front early but poor finishing and strong goalkeeping from Hilliard kept them at bay. But the Knights withstood the pressure and looked dangerous on the counter attack. The loss will sting for the Knights as they will feel they had the game in their hands with 15 minutes to play.

It will be interesting to see how both teams fare in the rest of the MIAC season. Macalester (2-0) don't look to be as strong as they have been the last two seasons but have a way of getting results. I see them finishing 2nd this year. CarlEton (1-2) is a very young team that is playing good soccer and improving with each game. They will need to outwork their opponents and DEFEND, DEFEND, DEFEND! Both are things they can do with the pieces they have. I expect to see the Knights finishing in 4th or 5th.

Dream strike from the first year Knight to top GAC in overtime in what appeared to be an even game! First win to lead off conference play since 2011 for CarlEton. Strange stat for a team who has been a mainstay in the postseason for the last decade.

Not a great look is the understatement of the year. I would use the word 'embarrassing', but I am accustomed to a higher standard of soccer. Good to see the Knights out of the blocks well so far. They are looking especially strong defensively having yet to surrender.

UST 2 Tufts 1 OT
Calvin 2 Brandeis 1


Calvin 2 UST 1 2OT

Should be a good weekend

I think the Toms keep it going against Tufts.

 Too bad for Mac. Always difficult want to team puts together that nice of season but comes up  just short. You have to question the committee choosing the Dubuque over Loras and Mac.  Makes you think that they do not consider margin of victory to be important as dubuque has  A few big losses on their resume. In the end, there was just nothing signature about Mac's season and one different result could've changed everything.  Best of luck to the Tommies who finally put it together this year!

good season for the Knights! Return to the playoffs for the god knows how many years in a row now!!

I was wrong in that CarlEton actually could finish 5th with a loss, which would be the most likely outcome. SJU vs. Olaf should be interesting even though I suspect both will still make the playoffs. Interestingly, if SJU loses, they would need help from UST, MAC, GAC, and CarlEton, whereas the Oles would only need help from UST and GAC. The Johnnies have their bizarre season to thank for that as they lost to both Bethel and St. Mary's.

If you go through tiebreakers and scenarios, the Knights automatically finish 6th with a loss.

The heat of the moment can change a man. What a weird day of MIAC results. Here's some winners and losers.

BIG Winners:

UST: Let's start with the top of the table as St. Thomas did just enough in Northfield to come away with a 1-0 win. With the win, they are outright MIAC champions and have homefield advantage in the playoffs. They are IN the NCAA tournament.

MAC: Turned things around in a slugfest in Collegeville with an OT winner to get the inside track on a first round bye.

Mark Heydt: Scored his 6th MIAC goal and surely locked up MIAC POY with an impressive offensive season from left back.

Look on the Brightside:

CarlEton: clinch a playoff spot on the day (10 years in a row!) and can clinch a home game with a win in Winona

St. Mary's: managed to have their best day in a while (by not playing). If they can somehow beat CarlEton, they actually have a good chance of getting in the playoffs. What is the world coming to?!

If only... if only...:

GAC: nice 2-0 win at home over lowly Concordia to clinch a playoff spot but can only think what could have been if things had stayed level in Collegeville

Bethel: the hiccup in Fargo..... Otherwise they'd be in 5th place right now. What is the world coming to?!

BIG Losers:

HAMLINE: WTF happened?! Could the mediocrity of the MIAC have helped you any more today?! St. Olaf, St. John's, and CarlEton all lose and you lay a fat egg against Bethel?!!!!! I don't get it.

Greg Holker: with the win over Olaf, Augsburg has false hope once again. He'll have to keep fighting for an 8 team playoff to find room for the Auggies

St. Olaf and St. John's: two more gut-wrenching losses to add to these subpar seasons. Each team's season could be on the line in Northfield this weekend OR the loser could still make the playoffs with 13 points. What is the world coming to?!

Heydt with a great goal but he certainly is winning the award for the biggest bitch on the field.

I agree that the MIAC will send 2 teams this year. It would take a Tommie-like collapse to keep UST out of the NCAA tournament. As long as they don't lose their last two regular season games, they should be fine.

Tomorrow is a big day for everyone. I've been pretty on point with my analysis all season so I'm going to put my money where my mouth is with some score predictions.

Hamline  3  @  Bethel  1

Concordia  0  @  Gustavus  2

Macalester  1  @  St. John's  1 -- 2OT

St. Thomas  0  @  CarlEton  2

St. Olaf  2  @  Augsburg  1  --  OT

Another classic alumni weekend for the Knights! I have to praise my son for his insights but scold him for his vulgarity and crude humor. Amazing that CarlEton is in 2nd place with 2 games to go! It seems this team shows up when it matters most. That was true on Saturday when they made the Oles look like Northfield's middle school team. Although that is nothing new as the Oles have embarrassed themselves in their last 5 games at Bell Field.

Here's a reminder of the last time St 0 visited CarlEton (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7DZnw4S5_I). How did that go again? If you don't remember, they lost to the Knights in a down year and then they were embarrassed on their home field in the playoffs. Both spoiled their at-large chances. Haven't seen another hype video in a while.

I expect the Knights to keep the train moving against St Thomas (who still could blow the MIAC). I will take the Knights 2-0 and goals from Roth and Onuoha.

Mammoth road win for the Knights! Great goal from Griese who has 6 points in the Knights last 3 fixtures (2G, 2A). It was clear that Mac had an athletic advantage at several positions but the teams were very even technically. So a good result for the Knights.

Mac has several solid attacking players but they don't combine to do anything dangerous. The team lacks an elite distributor to put their size and speed in the right attacking positions. Everyone is forced to create their own offense individually. They can't seem to get any shots off and everything from 35 yards and in turns into a scrum. Winning the scrums in front of goal and the set piece is the extent of their attack.

It was better tonight from CarlEton, which had a lot to do with the return of 3 key starters (including both captains). There was a lot more patience on the ball all over the field with the freshman Younkins continuing to take charge of the midfield. They moved it from side to side, got the ball into the wide areas, and were always looking to shoot or play a dangerous ball. Playing with the lead definitely helped. Keep in mind this Knights team has allowed just 8 goals in 14 games. This includes 4 consecutive shutouts and just one game that they've conceded multiple goals. Impeccable!!! Especially considering the amount of change in the Knights back line due to injuries. CarlEton has started 7 different defenders and only 1 defender has started every game this season. A large part of the defensive success is a credit to Brandon Hilliard, whose presence in net has been outstanding! The junior goalkeeper played the part again as he confidently intercepted crosses and covered up the ball in the penalty area countless times. The Knights are tough to beat with Hilliard in goal and when they defend this tough.

That said, the game was very even, with Macalester having 3 legitimate scoring chances in the last 20 minutes. The Knights were coming undone as Scots were streaking wide open on set plays. Macalester found another gear that they usually bring much earlier in the match (It was lackadaisical from the Scots for most of this one.) The best chance came with ten minutes left when a looping cross was met with a thumping heading from 6 yards out that skidded off the crossbar and over and went begging into the brisk St Paul night. CarlEton survived the barrage for a 1-0 win.

The result really clears our view of the six playoff teams! We'll just have to see if they each hold up and how the seeding shapes up in the coming weeks.

Unfortunately tuned into the 2nd half and OTs for the CarlEton vs Hamline match today. Slow and boring game, finished 0-0. Neither team looked very positive. The Knights had a little bit more of the ball but couldn't connect anything in the final third. Their only offense was forcing the ball up each wing and sending hopeful balls into the penalty area. And the service was terrible today. Nonetheless, a draw is better than a loss for the Knights who are very much alive with 8 points and 4 matches remaining.