MATCHUP

No. 2 seed Ohio Northern will host No. 3 seed Mount Union in the semifinals of the Ohio Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Tournament on Thursday, November 2 at 7 p.m. in Ada, Ohio.

Fans can follow the action online with Live Video | Live Stats

Tickets can be purchased here.

The Purple Raiders (16-2-1, 6-2-1 OAC) are led offensively by the senior duo of Jamon McCort (Magnolia / Sandy Valley) and Carter Hancock (Amherst / Marion L. Steele), McCort is tied for first in the conference in goals scored with 11, while Hancock has nine. Hancock also leads the OAC in assists with nine and is second in points with 27. Mount Union's defense is led by the senior trio of Adam Kalvitz (Avon), Brett Kayser (Cleveland / Lakewood St. Edward) and Zak Peterjohn (North Royalton). Freshman goalkeeper Jackson Callender (Cleveland Heights / Notre Dame Cathedral Latin) leads the OAC in goals against average, averaging just 0.47 goals per game and he's second in save percentage, sitting at 79-percent.

The Polar Bears (11-5-2, 7-1-1 OAC) are led offensively by Ryan Sommerfeld who is tied for the lead in the OAC in goals scored with 11 and he's fourth in points with 26. Ohio Northern's defense is led by goalkeeper Lucas Hickey, who is fourth in the conference in goals against average, averaging just 1.20 goals per game.

OAC Tournament History

Mount Union is making its 15^th OAC Tournament appearance and has an overall record of 4-12-3.

Ohio Northern is making its 24^th OAC Tournament appearance and has an overall record of 22-13-4, winning the tournament in 2006, 2008, 2010-13 and 2015.

The Raiders and Polar Bears have met three times in the OAC Tournament, with Ohio Northern winning all three matchups.

• 2020 – No. 4 Ohio Northern 1, No. 5 Mount Union 0 OT
• 2011 – No. 1 Ohio Northern 6, No. 5 Mount Union 0
• 1998 – No. 4 Ohio Northern 1, No. 1 Mount Union 0

Up next…

The winner will advance to the OAC Tournament Championship game, playing the winner of 4-seed John Carroll and 1-seed Otterbein with the highest remaining seed hosting the game on Saturday, November 4 at a time to be determined.

Coaches

David Krems is in his fourth season as the head coach of Mount Union. He led the Raiders to the OAC Tournament in his first season in 2020 and then again last season in 2022. Before coming to Mount Union, Krems was the assistant men's soccer coach at Penn State-Behrend and helped lead the Lions to a 35-6-2 record, including a pair of Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances. He has also had assistant coaching stints at Case Western Reserve University, Notre Dame College, Hiram College and Xavier University.

Chris Matejka is in his fifth season as the head coach at Ohio Northern and has led the Polar Bears to the OAC Tournament in each of his five seasons. Matejka has also led the Polar Bears an OAC Regular Season Title in 2022 and was also named the OAC Coach of the Year, along with two NCAA Tournament appearances.

Tournament Schedule

Tuesday, October 31 - First Round
 
No. 6 Marietta (4-5-0) 1 at No. 3 Mount Union (6-2-1) 2, OT
No. 5 Capital (4-4-1) 1 at No. 4 John Carroll (6-3-0) 2, OT
 
Thursday, November 2 - Semifinals
 
No. 4 John Carroll (6-3-0) at No. 1 seed Otterbein (8-0-1)
No. 3 Mount Union (6-2-1) at No. 2 Ohio Northern (7-1-1)
 
Saturday, November 4 - Finals
 
Highest remaining seed will host.