After winning the MIAA tournament finals, the Calvin men’s soccer team will advance to the first round of the NCAA DIII tournament on Nov. 10.

The Knights will play against Thomas More College at University Heights, Ohio at 8 p.m. this Friday at John Carroll University.

Calvin secured this position by beating Trine University 5-1 in the MIAA tournament semifinals this past Wednesday.

Calvin started off with a 2-0 lead in the first 20 minutes of the game, with Dillon Weldy scoring the first goal and Matt Hinds following up with Calvin’s second goal. Ten minutes before the first half ended, Chris Clemens scored through a penalty kick. Three minutes later, Matt Hinds responded with a quick third goal.

The second half was dominated by Calvin. Jacob Witte and Shaeffer Smith each scored a goal apiece, bringing the final score up to 5-1. Calvin outscored Trine 21 to 2 shots, controlling the flow of the game.

Riding on the momentum, the Knights defeated Adrian with a clean score of 5-0, winning the MIAA tournament.

Hunter Olson and Bobby McCaw scored in the first half, putting Calvin up at 2-0. The Knights had a 13-5 shot advantage at the end of the first half. Calvin exerted more pressure in the second half; Bobby McCaw, Jacob Lyon, and Ian Adams each scored a goal seven minutes apart. The game ended at 5-0 with the Knights outscoring the Bulldogs 31-8.

Calvin automatically won a bid to the NCAA III tournament through securing the MIAA championship. This is Calvin’s 15th time entering the NCAA III tournament—Calvin has entered the NCAA II tournament nine times in the past ten years.

Thomas More College, who Calvin will be competing against in the NCAA III tournament, has a record of 14-4-2 and stand at the top of their regional league undefeated at 7-0-1. Calvin has recorded a great performance of 19-0-1 and an undefeated score of 8-0-1 in the MIAA conference.

In addition, ten players of the men’s soccer team have received All-MIAA honors. Those selected for the All-MIAA first team are: Trent Vegter, Nate Van Ryn, Matt Hinds, Francisco Noyola, Bobby McCaw, Jacob Witte, Jacob Lyon, and Hunter Olson. Mitch Stark and DIllon Weldy were selected for the All-MIAA second team.