IRVINE, Calif.- The Madonna University men's soccer team had plenty to celebrate about after Yuri Farkas Gugliemi's goal helped the Blue and Gold to a 1-0 victory against No. 2 ranked Oklahoma Wesleyan to advance to the NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship Semifinal for the first time in program history.

Madonna will face third-seeded Central Methodist in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 30 at 9:30 p.m. They have beat seventh-seed Lindsey Wilson, 10-seed Bellevue, and 2-seed Oklahoma Wesleyan to advance to this point.

HERE'S HOW IT HAPPENED
The first half started fast, with the first shot of the game just over a minute in by Eagles' forward Pedro Alberto, but was dealt with easily by Madonna goalkeeper Joe Smith. The Crusaders dominated much of the possession throughout the first half, keeping Oklahoma Wesleyan deep in their own defensive third. In the 30th minute, Marlon De Freitas made a great 35 yard cross from the right hand side that connected with Farkas' head and snuck by the Eagles' goalkeeper and in the net to break the deadlock.

"Yuri is just a different class," said Crusaders Head Coach Mark Zathey on the game-winning goal. "He has that finishing touch and was the difference maker for us today and we're very grateful for that."

After that, the Eagles started to get a little possession going but not enough to get a goal back going into halftime. Madonna outshot their opponent in the first half 7-4.

In the second half the Eagles started to take over, as the Crusaders elected to invite pressure into their half and attack on the counter. Oklahoma Wesleyan had the majority of the shots in the second half with 10 to Madonna's eight. About ten minutes into the half, the Eagles played a ball into the box and Alberto Picchi nearly scored on the back post but was denied by the crossbar. The resulting rebound came back to an Oklahoma Wesleyan player but too fast for him to be able to redirect it towards the net. The Eagles had several other dangerous crosses into the box, but were dealt with well by the Crusader defense.

"We have to give credit to Joe [Smith] and the backline today," said Zathey. "They did very well and even on dead legs after the game yesterday they did well to keep the other team out."

Caio Mazzo Nogueira nearly scored a second for the Blue and Gold with 15 minutes left, after a corner was played towards the top of the box on the ground for him. He struck a well hit right-footed shot towards the top-left corner but Dusan Djordjev, the OKWU keeper, made a fantastic save to keep him out. The Eagles pushed to the last minute but it wasn't enough as the game ended 1-0 in favor of the Crusaders.

Madonna narrowly outshot the Eagles 15-14 with seven on goal for the Crusaders to their four. Djordjev made six saves in goal for the Eagles compared to Smith's four. Both teams had six corner kicks each, but Oklahoma Wesleyan had 13 fouls to Madonna's seven.
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"We've been so fortunate to have teams like volleyball and women's soccer who have a history of doing well in the national tournament supporting us," Zathey said. "It's been a long road and I'm really proud of the guys and hopefully we can keep this momentum going. Credit to Oklahoma Wesleyan, they were every bit the No. 2 team they were made out to be. They pressured and it wasn't pretty for us at times but our defense did well to deal with it."

The Crusaders will have a day off before facing No. 3 seed Central Methodist (Mo.) in the national semifinals on Friday, Nov. 30 at 9:30 p.m. The winner will face the winner of top-seeded William Carey (Miss.) and 5-seed Missouri Valley, the team who defeated Madonna in the tournament's second round last season.

The NAIA Network – the association's official video-streaming home – will broadcast all final-site matches live in Irvine, Calif. The video platform, powered by Stretch Internet, allows users access to live video, statistics and social interaction on a number of devices, including mobile. Single-day passes can be purchased for $9.95 while an all-tournament package is available for $29.95.

There will be free live video of the game available in Take 5, the Franciscan Center and at Coaches Corner in Livonia, located at 19170 Farmington Road. Come support your Crusaders at 9:30 p.m.

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