Morningside advanced to the championship game of the GPAC Women’s Soccer Tournament with a 2-1 victory against Northwestern. Photo / Gene Knudsen

Ellie Freebern

Taylor Daas

Taylor Daas couldn’t have picked a better time to score the first goal of her Morningside women’s soccer career.

Daas, a fifth year senior out for soccer for the first time following a standout four-year career for the Mustangs’ softball team, scored the game winning goal with 15 minutes left to break a 1-1 tie and lift Morningside to a 2-1 victory against Northwestern in Tuesday’s GPAC Women’s Soccer Tournament Semifinal at Elwood Olsen Stadium.

The Mustangs will take a 14-5-1 record into the GPAC Tournament Championship Game against Concordia slated for Friday at 7 p.m. at Elwood Olsen Stadium. The Bulldogs, who dropped a 1-0 regular season verdict against Morningside on Oct. 10 in Sioux City, punched their championship game ticket when they won a 5-3 shootout against 16th-ranked Hastings after the teams battled to a 1-1 double overtime tie.

The winner of the GPAC Championship Game will advance to the NAIA Women’s Soccer National Championship Tournament that will begin with first round games at various campus sites on Saturday, Nov. 21.

Daas, a three-time All-GPAC performer during her softball career, scored the game winner off an assist from Merle Bublitz. Her goal completed a Morningside come back that saw the hosts overcome a 1-0 halftime deficit.

Northwestern took an early lead when Jahdai Dunk scored her team-high seventh goal of the season just 8:33 into the contest.

The Red Raiders held their lead until the Mustangs’ Ellie Freebern tied the score at 1-1 with 16:29 left in the game. Freebern’s goal came courtesy of an assist from Amy Grause.

Daas scored the game winner just 1:29 after the Mustangs tied the score.

Northwestern, which bowed out with a 10-7-3 record, outshot the Mustangs by a 5-4 margin in the first half before Morningside controlled the action with a 6-2 shot advantage after the intermission.

Morningside’s Niccole McGuire and the Red Raiders’ Naomi Schimmel each had five saves.

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