No. 5 Baker Falls to Top-Seed Missouri Valley, 3-0 in Heart Semifinals

MARSHALL, Mo. - Coming off a thrilling 2-1 win in the quarterfinals, the fifth-seeded Baker men's soccer team suffered a 3-0 loss to top-seed Missouri Valley in the semifinals of the 2024 Heart Men's Soccer Conference Tournament, presented by WinWon, on Saturday night.

On a cool fall night in Marshall, Mo., the Vikings scored a goal within the first six minutes before tacking on two more late in the second half to knock the Wildcats out of the conference tournament.

Baker finished with a 12-7 advantage in shots and earned eight corner kicks in the match, besting the three corner set pieces taken by the Vikings.

Reilly Marlow-Jones and Jacob Thomas combined for eight of the 12 shots sent from BU's side with all five of Marlow-Jones' shots landing off target.

Thomas, the hero from Wednesday's quarterfinal match, had a breakaway chance end in heartbreak as his shot in the final minutes of the first half resulted in a kick save by the MVC keeper.

The Wildcats had a couple of set pieces come 20 minutes into the second half, first with a corner kick and then with a free-kick opportunity that allowed Marlow-Jones to go for goal, but his shot sailed high.

Immediately after the Marlow-Jones free kick, Valley went right down and scored its second goal to give them some breathing room before sealing things a few minutes later with their final goal.

Mo Salas, Evans Osei Amankwah and Javaughn Barrett each sent a ball towards goal in the final 15 minutes trying to break up the shutout, but all three shots were saved by Vikings goalie.

It was just the third time all season that Baker was held without a goal with the Wildcats scoring at least two goals in their first six matches of the fall until a 1-0 setback at No. 5 William Penn in mid-September.

With a 12-7-1 overall record, Baker will await its postseason fate with the Selection Show for the 2024 NAIA Men's Soccer Tournament set for Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. The NAIA playoffs begin with first-round action on Nov. 21.

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