(Spencer, Iowa) On Saturday November 2nd the Laker men took on Northeast, #1 in the nation, for the Region 11 championship. In a game that went into two overtime periods and into penalty kicks, the Lakers found success in the end. After winning the Region 11 Championship, the Lakers are now set to face the Region 6/9 champions Neosho County Community College on Saturday, November 9th in Chanute, Kansas at 5:00 pm. The Lakers finished the regular season 13-1-3 overall and 6-1-1 in conference.
"We are thrilled to be in this position competing for the district title. This is another huge opportunity for our program, and the players have shown tremendous dedication and resilience to reach this point. We know the Neosho is a quality opponent, but our team has bought into our vision and we feel confident about our chances," commented Head Men's Soccer Coach Ben MacRae.
The Lakers have scored 84 goals this season. Leading the Lakers in goals scored this season is sophomore Haruya Higuchi. Higuchi, a transfer from Marshalltown CC, has been a spark for the Lakers on the offensive side of the game, scoring 18 goals this season. Freshman Kasper Wollstein has 13 goals of his own. Between Higuchi and Wollstein, they account for 31 of the Lakers 84 total goals on the year. Sophomore Keiji Segiura, a returning NJCAA All-American in his freshman campaign, has 6 goals. Freshman Sam Storey adds 6 goals to his season stats, and the Lakers total. Adding five goals, is sophomore Garbhan Feeney. Lastly sophomore Rudhan Feeney has found the back of the net three times this season. Coming off the bench for the Lakers, sophomore Lander Barrio Gonzales has added five goals, freshman Rory Currie has four goals for the Lakers, freshmen Renato Gonzalez and Jeremy Koppe have three goals apiece.
Also on the offensive side, a host of Lakers have been assist machines, especially sophomore Garbhan Feeney, who leads the Lakers with 16 assists this season and 3rd overall in the nation. Kasper Wollstien is as efficient with assist as he is in goals, adding 13 assists of his own. Segiura has 9 assists, Higuchi has 8, freshman Florent Lefebvre and Rudhan Feeney have 7 assists a piece, as well as sophomore Shaiyon Johnson and Storey have five assists a piece. Coming off the bench for the Lakers, Currie has four assists. Koppe, freshman Yurok Cho and sophomores Reece Fahey and Lander Barrio Gonzales each have three assists.
For the Lakers, goalkeepers have played a huge part in their success this season. Combining for 7 shoutouts are freshmen Louis Kruger and Connal Doran. Kruger has played in 11 games totaling 990 minutes, and has had 37 saves (.689%), and he has allowed 16 goals (1.45 GAA). Kruger has a 7-1-2 record, with 4 shutouts. Doran has played in 6 games totaling 560 minutes, with 10 saves (.714%), and has allowed 4 goals (0.64 GAA). Doran has a record of 5-0-1, with 3 shutouts.
To learn more about Iowa Lakes Athletics, please visit iowalakesathletics.com.
Photo ID: Photo of Kasper Wollstein attached
MEDIA: For more information, please contact Ben MacRae, Head Men's Soccer Coach 712-580-8609 and Sports Information Marketing, at 712-362-7928 or amartin@iowalakes.edu.