LYNCHBURG, Va. – On Sunday afternoon, the No. 1 Messiah men's soccer team saw the 2023 season come to a close a little earlier than they were hoping. The Falcons fell in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament by a 1-0 score against the Ohio Northern Polar Bears. The match's lone goal came in the 26th minute off a free kick from around midfield. The delivery was headed into the back of the net by Brenden Gervers.
 
Despite outshooting the Polar Bears 22-11, Messiah was unable to find their moment as they were shutout for the first time since last year's NCAA Second Round against Williams.
 
With the 1-0 setback, Messiah saw their 43-match unbeaten streak come to an end. Over the course of the streak, the Falcons went 40-0-3. Messiah ends their season with an overall record of 20-1-1. Messiah has now won at least 20 games 16 times in program history.
 
Polar Bears Pressure Early
The Falcons were under heavy Ohio Northern pressure early in the match, but were able to weather the storm with shots in the third and sixth minutes missing wide and blocked, respectively. Messiah then went on the attack, attempting six shots in an eight-minute period. Only one of those attempts made it on frame with a shot from Sam Phillips that was saved in the 13th minute. Phillips hustled down the field without numbers, but was able to get around two defenders before touching a shot forward. Phillips was unable to get too much on the shot with the keeper barreling down on him and it was saved.
 
Then in the 16th minute, Patrick Lee took a shot from the top of the box, that looked to have hit a hand of an Ohio Northern defender, the referee said play on and no penalty kick was awarded.
 
Ohio Northern attempted shots in the 23rd and 24th minutes, but neither went on frame. Then in the 26th minute the Polar Bears were fouled near midfield. On the ensuing free kick, Ohio Northern's Will Shaffer sent a delivery into the box where Brenden Gervers got a head on it, sending it past a diving Adam Carter for a 1-0 Polar Bear lead.
 
Looking for the equalizer, Messiah were able to attempt five shots in the final 20 minutes of the half, but only a head shot from Jake Lent-Koop went on frame in the 43rd minute. Lent-Koop's shot was saved and the Polar Bears held a 1-0 lead as the match headed to the break.
 
Looking for an Equalizer
Trailing by a goal, Messiah pressured throughout the bulk of the second half, but their chances seemed to slip just inches beyond a foot or head. On multiple occasions, it looked like the Falcons were in a great possession to find their equalizing moment, but it eluded them time and time again. In the second half, Messiah outshot the Polar Bears 11-4, putting five shots on goal, but all five were saved.
 
In the 67th minute, Stefan Leitzel let a rip go from the left side, but the Polar Bear keeper made one of his six saves to keep the Falcons off the scoreboard. It was one of the many quality looks that the Falcons generated on the afternoon, but also one of the many attempts that Ohio Northern kept out of the back of the net.
 
Wrapping Up the Season
In the end, Messiah was unable to find the equalizer and fell by a 1-0 final score. The loss ended a 43-match unbeaten streak that spanned all of 2022 and the first 21 matches of the 2023 season. The Falcons went 40-0-3 during the stretch.
 
The 2023 campaign marks the 16th season with at least 20 victories in program history. The Falcons finished the season with an overall record of 20-1-1.