EAU CLAIRE, Wis. – The Yellowjacket men's soccer team entered the NCAA's Sweet Sixteen last weekend for the first time in program history, knocking off the defending national champions in St. Olaf. After failing to strike the golden goal in overtime, UWS sent four strikers to the box, and they converted all four to earn the program's first berth in the round of 16.
 
Saturday marked the historic match for the Yellowjackets, and they didn't have to travel far, being selected to participate in the tournament's third round on the campus of UW-Eau Claire. UWS would open the third round with a matchup against Amherst College, entering as the No. 8-ranked team in the country.
 
The Mammoths would strike at the 29th and 50th minutes of play to take a 2-0 lead, but UWS would counter, garnering goals in the 53rd and 69th minutes to even things up. Regulation time wouldn't be enough to determine a winner, leading to a pair of overtime periods.
 
With just over a minute separating both teams with penalty kick opportunities, Amherst sent a ball into the 18-yard box and sent a shot in the lower-left corner of net, taking a 3-2 victory and ending the Yellowjackets' season.
 
Match Notes

• Both squads traded several early shots, but to no avail, as both goalkeepers continued to display impressive defensive efforts as they've done all season.
• The first goal came from Fynn Hayton-Ruffner, as he notched an unassisted goal before the Mammoths drew a foul from the Yellowjackets, taking an early 1-0 lead.
• A barrage of fouls came in towards the later minutes of the first half, leading to a yellow card issued to both teams heading into the intermission.
• UW-Superior drew a foul inside the box, which led to Josh Bellamy (High Wycombe, England/FAB Football Academy) firing a kick to the lower-left portion of goal to cut the deficit in half at 2-1.
• Action commenced as the 69th minute struck, which saw Alfie Hudd (Exeter, England/Exeter) send a pass over to Aaron Shartin-Folkert (Hudson, Wis./Somerset), who placed a header past Mammoth keeper Max Landa to even the match at two goals apiece.
• The Yellowjackets would fall a man short, after a foul was called in the 80th minute to bring UWS to ten men.
• Superior was unable to get a shot off in the first overtime period, but Yellowjacket keeper Alex Paredes (Mequon, Wis./Homestead) was able to save one shot before another was sent off the post.
• With time ticking off the scoreboard, Amherst began an attack that led to Jacob Dinzeo send a feed to Michael Cherico, sending it past Paredes to give the Mammoths a 3-2 victory.

 
The Yellowjackets end the 2024 season with an 18-4-3 overall record, capping a historic season that saw Superior as the best offensive team across all three divisions of the NCAA.
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