GRANTHAM, Pa. - The top-seeded Messiah men's soccer team took the MAC Commonwealth Championship back from the Lycoming Warriors after an instant classic penalty kick shootout on Shoemaker Field on Saturday night. After playing to a scoreless, 0-0 draw after 90 minutes of regular-time and 20 minutes of overtime, the Falcons defended their home turf by claiming the penalty kick shootout with a 4-1 score against the second-seeded Lycoming Warriors.

Conner Bell made a key save for the Falcons during the shootout and was named the Tournament's Most Valuable Player after a pair of shutouts in the Tournament.

Messiah held the run of play throughout the majority of the contest, outshooting the Warriors 24-3 in a physical battle.

With the victory, Messiah earns the Automatic Qualifier from the MAC Commonwealth into the NCAA Tournament that begins next weekend. The full Tournament field will be released on Monday afternoon in a selection show on NCAA.com at 1:00 p.m.

Physical Match
As is always the case when the Falcons and Warriors square off, the match is a physical battle for the entirety of the contest with plenty of fouls called and many other not. Both Messiah and Lycoming fought and clawed for every inch of field and second of possession. In total 10 fouls were called against both teams, with many other left on the field.

Lycoming was given three yellow cards in the match, all three came in the second-half or in the overtime periods.

Prime Opportunity
The Falcons had a held a 6-1 advantage in shots during the opening half, but had yet to dent the scoreboard. With just over 20 minutes remaining on the clock, Messiah had their best opportunity to find the back of the net. A loose ball in the box fell to the foot of Luke Brautigam at the top of the six with no defenders in front of him. As Brautigam attempted to take a swing at the ball, his foot was clipped from behind and he was taken down in the box.

As a result a penalty kick was awarded to the Falcons and Samuel Ruiz Plaza stepped up to attempt to give Messiah the lead. Ruiz Plaza had made his only other penalty kick of the season back on Sept. 5 against Hartwick, but his attempted missed wide of the left post and the game remained scoreless.

Late Chance
Messiah had plenty of chances throughout the entirety of the match, but their final one looked like just the quality look that the Falcons needed to end the match prior to penalty kicks. With 15 seconds left on the clock in the second overtime period, Messiah sent a ball into the box from right in front of their own bench. Luke Brautigam redirected the cross on frame, but a leaping save turned the attempt away and the game moved to penalty kicks, despite Messiah owning a 24-3 advantage in shots throughout the match.

Penalty Kick Thriller
Competing in their first match decided by penalty kicks since a 5-4 penalty kick loss against these same Lycoming Warriors in the MAC Commonwealth semifinals on Nov. 6, 2013, the Falcons made all four of their kicks to put pressure on the Warriors.

In the first round of PKs, Nick West drilled his opening kick to get Messiah on the board, 1-0. The Warriors responded to even the shootout at 1-1. Cooper Robbins gave the Falcons a 2-1 lead before Lycoming's second kicker rattled his attempt off the crossbar.

With Messiah leading 2-1, heading to the third round, Samuel Ruiz Plaza stepped up and redeemed himself with a make to put the Falcons in the driver's seat at 3-1. Holding a lead, Connor Bell stepped up big for Messiah with a diving save to his right to turn Lycoming's Jake Webb's shot away and keep the Falcons' lead at 3-1. With just two shooters remaining for each team, Messiah just needed a make to seal the Conference for the Falcons.

Defender Shay Quintin, who has scored just one goal in his career, walked up to the spot and drilled the fourth and final penalty kick for the Flacons, giving Messiah a penalty kicked fueled Conference Title. The Championship for Messiah is the 17th in program history. 14 of the 17 Titles have come in the last 19 seasons, dating back to the 2000 fall seasons.

What's Up Next
With the Conference Championship, Messiah has officially punched their ticket to the NCAA Division III Tournament thanks to the Automatic Qualifier from the MAC Commonwealth. The full Tournament field will be announced  on Monday afternoon in a selection show on NCAA.com at 1:00 p.m. Follow GoMessiah.com throughout the week for more information on the Tournament and who the Falcons will be facing in the opening round.