MACOMB, Ill. -- A pair of goals from Juan Arias lifted second-seeded Oral Roberts past third-seeded Omaha 2-1 in Thursday's second semifinal of the 2021 #SummitMSOC Championship at John MacKenzie Alumni Field. Those two goals and six saves from goalkeeper Miles Motakef, including one off a penalty kick in the 88th minute, put the Golden Eagles into their first final since 2015.
Arias opened the scoring by tucking a free kick from outside the penalty area into the upper left corner of the frame in the 38th minute and the Golden Eagles would take the 1-0 advantage into the break.
The Mavericks, who outshot the Golden Eagles 16-12, got the equalizer from Kenji Mboma Dem in the 54th minute when he snuck a rebound-attempt past Motakef after his initial shot was blocked in the box by Andrew Nunez.
Arias scored in a more conventional way in the 75th minute to give his team the lead back at 2-1. His second goal came off a header when he finished a perfectly played cross from Felipe Medina.
Omaha did not relent and the Mavericks turned their pressure into a golden opportunity to square things up late in the match. Motakef went through a Maverick to play a service in the penalty area and was whistled for the foul. He quickly made up for that mistake by deflecting the left-footed strike from Nil Ayays off his goal line to preserve the lead.
The Mavericks were rewarded a corner kick following the scrum, but the Golden Eagles cleared it away and were able to hold on for the win.
Oral Roberts will face top-seeded Denver in Saturday's championship match at 1 p.m. CT.
Turning point
- After committing a foul in his own goalie box, ORU netminder Miles Motakef stopped a penalty kick in the 88th minutes by Omaha's Nil Ayats to preserve the 2-1 victory for the Golden Eagles.
Inside the box score
- Juan Arias had scored just one goal this season (Oct. 5 vs. Central Arkansas) entering the postseason, but came up with his second career brace in the victory with a goal in both halves
- Omaha's Kenji Mboma Dem scored his team-leading third goal of the season in the 54th minute -- each of those goals have come in the last four matches
- Both teams got double-digit shots off with Omaha holding a 16-12 edge in that category and a 7-6 edge in shots on goal
- Summit League Offensive Player of the Year Dante Brigida was credited with three shots, two of which came on goal
News & Notes
- This will mark the first time since 2015 that Denver and Omaha will not square off in the title match. There was not a posteason tournament held this past spring and the Pios and Mavericks had appeared in four straight from 2016-19
- Oral Roberts made its way back to the final for the first time since 2015 when the third-seeded Golden Eagles fell 2-0 to the top-seeded Pioneers
- The Golden Eagles' are 1-4 all-time in Summit League Tournament finals with their lone victory coming in 1999 when they were also the No. 2 seed
- Before Juan Arias' brace in Thursday's second semifinal, the last time a player scored two goals in a Summit League Tournament match was Omaha's Fred Frimpong in a 2017-semifinal victory over Western Illinois
#SUMMITMSOC
