Dragons defense holds firm in 1-0 win in G-MAC title game

Tiffin University has won the G-MAC Tournament Championship.
Tiffin University has won the G-MAC Tournament Championship.

Tiffin University's men's soccer team simply would not be denied.

The Dragons (15-4) tallied a goal late in the first half and then played nearly the entire second half a man down against Ohio Valley, yet still managed to win the G-MAC Tournament Championship in a thrilling 1-0 victory.

The two teams battled evenly for most of the first half before Ramiesh McKnight took a cross from Leo Hasenstab on the right side and deposited it in the net in the 43rd minute to give TU a 1-0 lead at halftime.

Just minutes into the second half, though, Hasenstab was sent off the field with a straight red card after a collision at midfield. Suddenly, the Dragons had to face a hard charging Fighting Scots offense for the rest of the half a man down and clinging to a one goal lead.

Ohio Valley pounded the ball at the Dragons defense, totaling a 12-3 shot advantage in the second half, but could not crack the TU line. The defense allowed only two shots on goal in the second half, as Dylan Morris made 4 total saves in the game to preserve the shutout.

The Dragons overall were outshot 17-6, but the Dragons made their only shot on goal count as it was the gamewinner.

Tiffin will now wait to see their final regional ranking on Monday at 6 pm, when selections are made for the NCAA Regional Tournament.