PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Fort Hays State men’s soccer team ended their season on a scoreless draw with Barry University (Fla.) in the NCAA National Semifinals. Barry connected on five of eight penalty kick attempts, while Fort Hays State converted four of eight. The Tigers end their historic season at 17-2-2 overall, while Barry is set to meet the winner of West Chester and Cal Poly Pomona for the National Championship on Saturday (Dec. 1).

A defensive battle from the start, neither team could take advantage of missed opportunities. Both the Tigers and Buccaneers ended the first period of regulation with seven shots and three shots on goal.

In the second half of regulation, Barry held a 7-6 edge in shots taken, while both squads were able to put two shots on frame. During the 55th minute, Tiger keeper Fernando Pina experienced a trio of aggressive looks from the Buccaneers but came out of it unscathed. Ninety minutes came and went, and the match was still scoreless. However, in the series of aggressive looks Pina was injured and Cullen Fisch eventually replaced him in the 65th minute.

The first National Semifinal was then to be determined by sudden death overtime periods. In the first overtime, Alonso Rodriguez got the only shot off from either team. His shot was met by the Buccaneer keeper Marco Sordi. In the second overtime period, the substitute keeper Fisch fended off three shots from the Buccaneers to keep the season alive. 110 minutes was not enough to settle this battle.

For the first time all season, penalty kicks determined the Tigers’ fate. After the first round of PKs, both teams connected on their shot attempts. Tobias Patino put the Tigers on the board. In the second set, neither Buccaneer Lucas Russo nor Tiger Sergio Villalba were able to convert.

Barry was able to get a slight lead in the third round as Lorenzo Cerrai made his attempt and Moises Peralta was not able to convert his. However Buccaneer Francisco Aguirre missed his shot and sophomore Moritz Walther took the stage and connected on his penalty kick equalizing the score at 2-2.

In the fifth frame, Barry gave FHSU a chance to advance to the title match as Fisch came up with a save. Abdoulaye Cisse was set to take advantage and delivered his shot, however, leaping keeper Marco Sordi saved Barry’s season, pushing the penalty kicks into sudden death.

Both squads converted the sixth and seventh PKs. Mauricio Etcheverry and Raul Fierro converted for the Tigers. In the eighth round, Ivan Barriga converted his shot and Luis Torres was not able to secure another round for the Tigers as his shot in the cross bar and flew up over the goal.

All in all, Fort Hays State ended their 2018 campaign with the most victories (17) in a single-season and a 16-match unbeaten streak. The Tigers broke numerous individual and program records including all 10 offensive single-season team categories.