Finishing the season as Co-Conference Champs would be something to celebrate for most programs across the country, but for the women’s soccer team, they are not satisfied yet. They will not be satisfied until they are sipping on their lemonade in San Antonio in December, and that journey starts now.

With their lone conference blemish coming as a tie to Wartburg, the Duhawks quite literally blew their competition out of the water. Only allowing four goals in conference play, they know that they are talented, but they feel they still have a lot to prove.

Senior captain Jess Kern is excited for the postseason because she knows that Loras has what it takes.

Leah Sedelle Chapman | My Duhawk

Hillary Wilson dribbles the ball against her Cornell opponent.

Total team play is what has gotten Loras to this point, and that is what they are going to lean on when it comes time for the NCAA Tournament.

After a slow start, the Duhawks seemed to heat up as the temperature went down. In the month of October alone, Loras owned a +34 goal differential, which is certainly a feat to be proud of. But none of that matters now, now it is time to play for the pride and glory that Loras is known for.

“We work for the entire year. It’s the best and most exciting time of the season. Every game we have to play our best and hardest because we never know when it could be the last time that we step out onto the pitch,” said senior captain Kate Young.

Loras took on the Luther College Norse on Wednesday evening with hopes to return to the Conference Championship match once again.

For the women, it’s “go time.”

The name Jay DeMerit might not ring any bells, but if you take a minute to research him, you will find out the story of an athlete who stopped at nothing to fulfill his dream of playing professional soccer.

The path to fulfilling his dream has now been turned into a documentary, “Rise & Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story.” It is a moving and inspirational success story that has been picked up for distribution in the U.S. and abroad.

“Rise & Shine” will premiere at the Mindframe Theaters on November 3 at 4:50 p.m. and 6:35 p.m. as well as on November 6 at 3:30 p.m.

The 92-minute film traces the Green Bay, Wisconsin native’s journey from failed tryouts with Major League Soccer through early frustrations in English football’s lowest divisions.

In an inspiring sports tale, DeMerit ultimately triumphs in soccer glory becoming a captain for England’s Watford FC and joining Team USA as a hard-charging, center-midfielder at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

Assistant men’s basketball coach Ryan Kane grew up with Jay DeMerit and described Jay as a typical Midwestern, values-to-the-core guy who was not that highly recruited out of high school.

He went to the University of Illinois-Chicago, never getting notoriety even though he was a good player. He went through the years with a bit of a chip on his shoulder because of that.

“We played youth sports together, soccer which he was of course good at, basketball, and baseball. I lived right on the boarder of the district, and we ended up going to rival high schools, so we grew up as competitors following our years playing together in youth,” said Kane. “He was a multi-sport athlete in soccer and basketball, where I played against him.”

By sharing Jay’s unique story and the behind-the-scenes making of the documentary, Kane was the sole reason the independent movie theater, Mindframe, is bringing the movie to Dubuque.

“I put Mindframe in touch with the makers of the movie, and the theater was impressed enough to have it screened. We have used our soccer team’s connections with the young soccer community to get the news out there and promote it,” said Kane. “With the soccer background in the movie, it will speak to soccer fans because they will understand the concept of the story. As Jay says, ‘it’s a story about hope, dreams, team building, and inspiration.’ And so my hope is to get as many people as we can to go and see it.”

The makers of the movie had to turn to fans in order to find funding for Jay’s incredible story to reach the public. Nick Lewis and Ranko Tutulugdizija built a huge groundswell and raised funds through the grassroots crowd-sourcing organization Kickstarter (www.kickstarter.com).

Kickstarter is an online fundraiser for musicians, artists, filmmakers and others to fund projects via donations and participation from the public. “Rise and Shine” exceeded a $215,000 goal by almost $10,000 claiming the spot as the top Kickstarter campaign ever for an indie film, even yielding donations from Seth Meyers of “Saturday Night Live” and Rivers Cuomo of the band Weezer.

“I think Jay wants the documentary to just promote soccer,” said Kane. “For someone who has dedicated his life to and loves the game, I think he just wants to make the sport more popular around America.”

After finishing their regular season at 14-2-3, the men’s soccer team is primed and ready for their postseason.

“We had a few slip-ups this year, but I think those help us prepare for the postseason,” said sophomore midfielder Kevin Cavers.

Leah Sedelle Chapman | My Duhawk

First-year Tim Van Den Bergh lines up for a kick against Cornell. He has 2 goals this season while seeing action in 19 games. The Duhawks hope he can contribute throughout in the postseason.

They know, however, that those days are as good as gone. Now every team they face will know what is at stake, and if they have a slip up, their season may very well be over.

“The postseason is where the good teams are filtered out by the great teams. What we have worked for in the regular season doesn’t mean anything unless we do some great things in the postseason,” said senior captain and goalkeeper Nate DuBois.

Everyone would like to look forward to the NCAA Tournament, but the Duhawks know they have some work to do before they can celebrate anything. After a tie to Central and a loss to Luther, to guarantee an NCAA Tournament berth, Loras must be sure to win the Conference Tournament Championship.

“We know that every game from now on will be hard, so we have to come out with our best in order to keep going forward,” said sophomore forward Alejandro Cosmopolis. “We have to be ready to play 120’ but will always be looking to finish it in 90’.”

Can Loras return to the Final Four like the teams of 2007 and 2008? Only time will tell, but from the kind of season they have had, this team has all the makings of a National Championship contender.

Senior Donald St. George has been through it all. From being a Division I athlete at Marquette, to scoring goals for Loras College. St. George tells it all in this week’s Duhawk Spotlight.

The Loras Duhawks and Washington University Bears met each other on the Rock Bowl Sunday afternoon in a pivotal match up on the national scene.  Two of NSCAA’s top ten teams meeting, meant that senior day for the Duhawks would not be easy.

From the very first whistle, the Bears tried to keep possession away from the attacking Duhawks.  With a string of solid passes it was two minutes until the Duhawks would see their first touch.

The anticipated match-up did not disappoint. Within six minutes of the start, the Duhawks got their first shot on the Bears.  Brad Joiner, coming off an injury that kept him from the last match, was able to get a shot off but Washington’s keeper, Jonathan Jebson, was not troubled.

Leah Sedelle Chapman | My Duhawk

Senior goalkeeper Nate DuBois protects against a corner kick by Washington University in St. Louis. The game ended in a 0-0 draw after two overtimes.

“I felt we came out pretty hard. This was a game of two very good teams, but two different styles. I felt that both teams played really well, and Dubs’ save at the end was real clutch,” said sophomore Kevin Cavers.

Loras was not the only one to find opportunities, though, as Washington had maybe the best chance of the half, when Peter Jebson fired a one-touch shot into the top corner.  Nate Dubois came to the rescue though, diving and tipping the ball over the crossbar to keep it knotted at zero.

It stayed that way going into the half.  The Duhawk seniors (Nate Dubois, Kyle Quillin, Camilo Garces, Malcolm Calbert, Chris Comstock, Donald St. George, Colin Pekovitch, Dan Miller, and Coach Jon “Maddog” Hartley) were recognized during this time, and they entered the second half with hopes of getting a W on their senior day.

The second half began with more opportunities on both sides.  The first real quality chance came from the Bears in the 53rd minute: Zach Query hit a laser off the Duhawks left post which rebounded to a waiting Dylan Roman.  Roman hit the bouncing ball wide and the Duhawk fans exhaled.

From there, the game evened out and although each offense looked dangerous at times, defense prevailed and solid chances were hard to come by.

Perhaps the most exciting point of the game came in the 85th minute when a penalty was called for the Bears, and Patrick McLean and Dubois must square off.

“When it came down to it, I knew I had to make the save. My team needed me right then, and I was able to come through in the clutch,” said senior goalkeeper, Nate DuBois.

McLean’s shot brought back memories of last year’s NCAA tournament game, and the weak shot was caught by Dubois.  The Duhawks responded with one of the loudest cheers of the year, and momentum began to swing in the Duhawks’ favor.

Loras had several chances before the end, most notably a shot that went over from Van Den Bergh.  Tim found himself about ten yards out, but the bouncing ball was too difficult to get a solid foot on it.

Regular time then finished up in a goal-less draw and the two teams headed to golden goal overtime.

In overtime the Duhawks started the chances off; Van Den Bergh, receiving the ball on the left side of the field sent a nice ball into the back post for Kevin Cavers.  Cavers managed to get a head on the ball, but his shot sailed over.

Donald St. George also made an attempt in the first OT, but the hard shot was sent directly into Jebson’s stomach.

The second OT swung towards Wash U’s favor.  The Bears created some dangerous chances getting into the attack.  Their attack attracted most of the Duhawks’ attention as the only Duhawk opportunity was the last of the game. Cavers’ corner sailed over everyone and time expired.

An exciting match up between two of the nation’s top teams ended, 0-0.  Neither team walked away from the game feeling necessarily good or bad about the contest, but each probably feeling they should have gotten the W.

The women’s soccer team, ranked No. 16 in the nation, had to wait a little longer for its showdown with No. 14-ranked Washington University on Sunday afternoon, as the men’s match needed extra time, but the wait didn’t distract the Duhawks.

The Duhawks immediately came onto the field to pressure on the Bears.

“We came out really strong and really wanted to beat this team to show that we can compete with the best of the best,” said senior Jess Kern.

Kaitlyn Keely

Loras and Washington University players try to track down an airborne shot during a match of two top-20 teams.

“I knew the cross was coming in from Maddie, but I wasn’t sure where on my body it was going to land,” Lohmeyer said. “I was able to get a good hit on it and get us on the board.

The Duhawks were not done just yet: a combination of offensive pressure and a poor decision led to yet another Loras goal. At the top of the 18, a Washington player inadvertently chipped the ball past the goalkeeper.

The Duhawks scored again, not even a minute later, when Lohmeyer grabbed a penalty for the Duhawks after being taken down inside the 18.  Kern would convert the spot kick for her sixth goal of the season. Just after the quarter-hour, the Duhawks were up 3-0, and definitely in the driver’s seat.

After the penalty the game slowed down as much as a top-20 match can and the score remained 3-0 until the last few minutes of the first half.

Washington found their first tally of the game in the 43rd minute as Mari Greenberg slipped it past Katie Chambers.  Greenberg came onto the ball after the Bears’ first shot hit post and rebounded into the 6-yard box.

The first half would end that way, and Loras followed it by honoring their seniors during the break.  Katie Chambers, Lisa Waltz, Natalie Schlader, Kate Young, Brittan Rooney, Tonya Lohmeyer, Jessica Kern, and Ali Schmitt were all honored for their contributions to the Duhawk program.

The second half was a continuous game of back-and-forth soccer. In probably the most physical half of soccer the ladies have seen all year, Loras held strong with an impressive defensive display.

After a couple chances for the Duhawks to score in the first 10 minutes, the Bears started to really press and put the Duhawks under quite a bit of pressure. The defense, led by senior and reigning IIAC defensive player of the week, Katie Chambers, did not break and posted a shutout in the second half.

On Tuesday, the Iowa Conference named sophomore Kinsey Campbell the new defensive player of the week.

Chambers was called upon a handful of times and was certainly up to the task. An impressive 70th minute save from Chambers prevented the Bears from getting back in the game and really opening up the contest.

The Duhawks were not without some offense of their own though, as Kate Young led a counter attacking offense to put some pressure of their own on the Bears. The Duhawks were not able to tally another, but between their counter and solid defense, it was enough to hold onto the victory and defeat the Bears, 3-1.

Loras now is preparing for the Iowa Conference Tournament this weekend and hopes to take home the crown once again.

The Washington University Bears came to the Rock Bowl to face another ranked team, Loras College. The Duhawks celebrated Senior Day and a 3-1 victory.

by Mareah Adolphs

The Loras College Duhawks honored their seniors and took on Washington University on Sunday afternoon in the Rock Bowl for the final home regular season game. The teams would end in a 0-0 tie in double overtime.

By Mareah Adolphs

The #7 Loras College Duhawks took on Central College on Saturday in the Rock Bowl. After two overtimes, neither team could score one more and the match would end in a draw with a final score of 3-3.

Perhaps it was this draw that fueled the fire to push the Duhawks to beat #8 Dominican Sunday afternoon 5-0. Despite this convincing win, the  Duhawks remained at #7 in this week’s rankings.

The men’s soccer team has blown out of the gate to an impressive 9-2-0 record, and a 2-0 form in the Iowa Conference, after a month of play.

They have climbed their way into the NSCAA polls, and currently find themselves at No. 7 in the nation, a position the program has not tasted since the 2010 preseason rankings.

Last Friday night, the Duhawks took on the Augsburg Auggies in the Rock Bowl. Augsburg came in with a 7-0-1 mark, with their only blemish coming from a tie with Iowa Conference opponent, Luther College.

Leah Sedelle Chapman | My Duhawk

Junior Forrest Olson celebrates with a teammate.

After taking a touch on his own 45 yard line, Cavers dribbled 30 yards before passing it off to freshman Tim van den Bergh, who then cross it to junior Sean Lewis to put it home and give Loras a 1-0 lead, which they would hang on to for the rest of the night.

Senior Nate DuBois continued his stellar campaign pitching another shutout to bring his season total to four.

On Saturday, Loras took to the busses as they head out to Storm Lake, Iowa, to christen the brand new field turf on the campus of Buena Vista University.

The Beavers would find themselves gasping for air as Loras controlled the temp from start to finish. Goals from Van den Bergh, sophomore Alejandro Cosmopolis, and first-years Tom Fluegel and Dillon Olson would pave the way for the Duhawks.

The team will have two more Iowa Conference matches this week before traveling to River Forest, Illinois to take on the No. 8-ranked Dominican Stars.

“Dominican is a rival match. It’s going to be a battle, but the biggest challenge is maintaining our focus for the two games prior to Dominican,” said DuBois.

While Sean Lewis took his explanation of Dominican into more depth.

“Dominican has always been an exciting game for us. They are a team who have skilled players who can cause problems. We’ve lost to them in the Sweet Sixteen, but beat them in the regular season,” said Lewis. We’ve got to come out knowing we have a target on our back and remember that no team should be overlooked.”

In a match that will feature two storied programs, Loras will hope to repeat its success from last year’s match, in which they won 2-0.

In order to do that, the Duhawks will have to continue their style and strategy of play that has proven to be so effective thus far in the season.

“Augsburg was a really good test. Luckily we came out on top. We are expecting to see a similar level of skill and intensity on Sunday versus Dominican,” said Cosmopolis.

“The key for us is going to be to simply play our game and not focus on the fact that this is a big game. Its soccer and we have all done this a thousand times so we need to get relaxed into the game quickly. This is a great opportunity and great preparation for the NCAA Tournament, and we all are looking forward to it,” said Cavers.