Springfield, Ore. | On a wet and windy Oregon night, the Warner Pacific University Men's Soccer team (16-2-2) played to a 0-0 draw through regulation and two overtime periods against the Corban University Warriors (11-6-1), with the Knights advancing to the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Tournament Championship after clinching the penalty kick advantage, 8-7.

The regulation period proved to be some of the most grueling and intense minutes Warner Pacific would play all year, as the Knights and Warriors went blow-for-blow with each other for 90 straight minutes, neither side willing to give in to elimination. Ten total yellow cards were distributed during the regulation and overtime periods of tonight's game, proving the intensity was at an all-time high for these programs.

The best chance for either side in regulation time wouldn't be found on the stat sheet, as the Warriors had what appeared to be a goal in the second half wiped off the board after the head official determined the Knights' defender was fouled by the Warriors' attacker in the act of scoring. Both Knights' senior goalkeeper Alexis Calderilla-Hurtado and Warriors' goalkeeper Justin Keegan refused to allow any scoring opportunities come to fruition through the regular gameplay, both recording 3 saves apiece in their semifinals showdown.

Moving to penalty kicks, both benches broke from their huddles, with Calderilla-Hurtado and Keegan meeting at the designated PK goal to exchange pleasantries. Neither goalkeeper was willing to bend through 110 minutes of gameplay, nor did they look ready to change that narrative.

Corban's Carlos Llamosa was granted the first attempt in the shootout, but was left unsatisfied with his result when Calderilla-Hurtado swooped in and blocked his try.

One successful attempt later from each team, Warner Pacific's Isaac Tarelo sailed his shot high above Keegan's head, leveling the playing field back to an even 1-1 on successful shootout goals.

Back-and-forth Corban and Warner Pacific went, going goal-for-goal with each other on six attempts for each team. After the first five penalty shots for each team, a "sudden death" rule takes into effect, meaning that the next team to take the PK advantage would be declared the winner.

As Corban's Tristan Erispe strolled into the box, Calderilla-Hurtado walked his habitual goalpost-to-goalpost trot, prepared himself for the attempt, then read Erispe like a book to block his attempt, giving the Knights the break they needed to put this one away.

WPU midfielder Matias Castano was the 9^th and final PK shooter selected to represent the Knights, with the fate of this game resting on his shoulders. Castano placed the ball on the PK mark, exhaled one final breath to ease the nerves, then blew his shot past Keegan to give Warner Pacific the 8-7 shootout victory, and advancing them to the CCC Tournament Championship game.

In a storybook finale for the ages, the Warner Pacific Men's Soccer team will battle the Oregon Tech Hustlin' Owls once again with a championship on the line. Since Warner Pacific already secure the first CCC Automatic Qualifier (AQ) into the NAIA National Tournament, the Owls have already earned the second AQ that comes with the tournament championship, since WPU cannot earn the second AQ themselves.

With both teams bound to the National Tournament already, Friday's championship match will be the final test both teams will need to not only prove their championship caliber gameplays, but also once and for all determine who will be the top team representing the CCC in the NAIA National Tournament. This Friday at 12pm PST, the Knights and Owls battle one final time with a Championship up for grabs.