Kangaroos win crown, advance to the dance

UMKC's tension charged 4-3 shootout victory over top seeded Oakland University was a two-fold triumph for the Kangaroos' men's soccer team.

First, by virtue of the win, they captured the Summit League Championship tournament crown, their first conference title since 2001.

Secondly, and more importantly, the Roos earned a berth in the NCAA College Cup soccer tournament.

UMKC sophomore goalkeeper Ken Cooper made seven saves, including two vital shootout grabs, and the Kangaroos converted on all four of their penalty kicks in the overtime thriller Sunday afternoon in Rochester, Mich.

"They're very happy and proud like they should be," UMKC Head Coach Benben said. "Certainly we have a lot of respect for both Oakland and Western Illinois, they're great teams. But it was a great accomplishment."

The Golden Grizzlies came out with their guns blazing, firing four shots in the first 7:30 of the match. Stefan St. Louis took his first crack at the net 40 seconds into the fray, but UMKC sophomore goalkeeper Ken Cooper was able to sweep up the attempt.The Kangaroos had few chances on offense in the first frame. Until UMKC sophomore midfielder Levi Coleman recorded the team's first shot on goal (SOG) in the 33rd minute, Oakland had out-blasted the Kangaroos 10-0. Still, the game remained scoreless going into the break.

According to Benben, the field condition was a big factor, as the surface was wet due to rain and periods of heavy snow.

"Overall the conditions were tough," he said. "It was really slippery."

Cooper came up with his third stop on another nodded ball, this one off the noggin of Sebastian Harris at the 30:11 mark, and then he seized Tom Catalano's effort several minutes later, giving him four saves for the frame.

Early in the first half, the Kangaroos received their first big break of the match. The Golden Grizzlies' goalkeeper Steve Clark was slapped with a red card at the 52:10 mark for an illegal tackle outside of the box after taking down Kangaroos' senior forward Brain Harris. UMKC would play a man up for the remainder of the match and Oakland was forced to employ inexperienced redshirt freshman net minder Mitch Hildebrandt.

Undaunted, Oakland showed their mettle. St. Louis, with an opportunity in the box, struck a shorthanded goal at the 58:07 mark to put the Golden Grizzlies up 1-0.

But Harris, the newly anointed Summit League Offensive Player of the Year, was quick to equalize for UMKC, banging in his 12th goal of the season on a Coleman assist. He was able to kick the ball through Hildebrandt's mitts for the game-tying tally.

"Brian just beat him to the ball and poked it past him," Benben said.

Harris went back to work on Hildebrandt again, directing two more SOGs at the untested goalkeeper through the 76th minute. But the freshman hung tough and salted away both efforts.

Cooper preserved the stalemate with his fifth save on Piotr Nowak's ball in the 86th minute. The match would go to extra periods with the score tied 1-1, marking the second consecutive game in which UMKC had gone into overtime.

Neither squad could close the deal in the first session, but Oakland's Catalano almost ended the match two minutes in. Fortunately for UMKC, his errant missile hit the post. Kangaroos' senior forward Caleb Mitchell recorded UMKC's lone shot - it was blocked by a Golden Grizzly defender.

The Kangaroos were on the defensive through the second OT, as the understaffed Oakland squad managed four shots, three of which were stopped before reaching Cooper, the other sailing wide of the mark.

With the match still even after 110 minutes of frantic soccer, the game would be decided on penalty kicks. For the UMKC Kangaroos, a trip to the NCAA College Cup Championship was on the line.

And with successes in all four of their PK's versus two Cooper snags, the Roos punched their ticket to the Big Dance.

"They all feel great," Benben said. "It's just a lot of hard work from our support staff, coaches, and players. It's tough to get in - there's only 48 bids. We're proud to be a part of the field but we also think we're a good team and we're going to go as far as we can."

The Roos' first-round NCAA oppenent will be anounced live on ESPNews (Time Warner Cable Chan. 204-SD/1204-HD) today.

dcordill@unews.com