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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The No. 15-ranked Northeastern State men's soccer team defeated Southern Nazarene 5-0 Thursday evening at DeLoache Field.
 
The RiverHawks (12-3, 10-0 MIAA) remained perfect in the conference and clinched no worse than a share of the 2014 MIAA Regular Season Championship. The title is the first for Northeastern State since winning the 2003 Lone Star Conference Championship. NSU needs to earn a result (win or draw) in one of its final two matches to secure the league crown outright.
 
The Crimson Storm fell to 3-11 overall and 2-7 in the league.
 
Northeastern State possessed the ball in Southern Nazarene territory early but could not crack the defensive code for most of the first half. A deflected pass in the 40th minute put freshman midfielder Trevor Reed through, and he buried his second goal of the season to give the home side the halftime advantage.
 
Senior midfielder Jordan Schmoker added an insurance marker in the 61st minute from junior midfielder Paul Samia, and the floodgates opened after that. The RiverHawks scored three times in a four-minute span later in the half to earn the 5-0 victory.
 
Schmoker sent a cross into the box that was headed by sophomore midfielder Chris Mendez to freshman forward Ricardo Palomino. Without hesitation, Palomino rose above his defender and headed home his second of the season to the left post in the 75th minute.
 
Sophomore midfielder Jonathan Guzman rifled the ball into the top right corner from the top of the 18-yard box in the 76th minute, and freshman forward Austin Dinkel went down for a slide tackle in the 79th minute that deflected into the net.
 
Mendez registered two assists in the match, which was a career high. Schmoker finished with a goal and two assists. He leads the nation with 12 helpers this season.
 
Sophomore goalkeeper Jackson Biles (11-3) saved all four shots on goal, giving him seven shutouts this season. He leads the MIAA in that category and now owns the school record for most clean sheets in a single campaign. He also has nine career shutouts, which moves him into sole possession of third place in NSU history.
 
SNU's Jeff Ray (3-10) finished with five goals allowed and seven saves in 78:47. Dakota Ellicott played the final 11:13 and did not face a shot on frame.
 
Northeastern State outshot Southern Nazarene 28-9 and led 6-5 in corner kicks.
 
The RiverHawks will now head to Hays, Kansas, for a showdown with No. 24 Fort Hays State. The two teams will kickoff at noon Oct. 26 in a battle that could help determine the No. 1 seed in the MIAA Championship tournament and the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Championship Central Regional.
 
NORTHEASTERN STATE COACH ROB CZLONKA
On clinching a share of the conference championship…
"It feels fantastic to win our first MIAA Championship. That was one of our goals we set at the beginning of the year. At the moment, we have clinched a share of the title with Fort Hays State. Sharing it with a quality team like Hays is great, but I think we have it in us within the next two matches to clinch it outright."
 
On the balanced attack…
"It's exciting to have as many guys who are athletic and hungry to play and score as we have. We're blessed to have the talent and diversity in players that we've brought to our program and they showed it tonight. When you put one of our players on the field they, work very hard to do their best for the team. They are all being rewarded with opportunities for the effort."
 
On the big match against Fort Hays State on Sunday…
"A Fort Hays State-Northeastern State match is always going to be huge. I think we've solidified ourselves as the Kansas-Oklahoma rivalry for Division II men's soccer. Our guys have been focusing on tonight's game at hand, but in the back of their mind it's been sitting there. We knew we had to go to Hays this weekend. We're going to be doing all we can to make sure we're ready to play there. They are extremely good at home, and it will be a tough challenge. We are excited about the opportunity to play a great team like Fort Hays."
 
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