CLAREMORE, Okla. - Rogers State men's soccer (6-5-4, 6-1-2 GAC/MIAA) scored five goals in the second half to topple Newman (8-7, 5-4 GAC/MIAA) on chilly senior night at Soldier Field.
 
"Newman challenged us in the first half, but credit to our men for coming out in the second half and scoring five goals," said Head Coach Derek Larkin. "They surprised us in the first half, as they seemed content to fight to a draw. But in the second half, we played aggressively. I am so happy for our seniors, as they all got playing time and our fans brought the energy, which I loved seeing as a coach."
 
Five different Hillcats got on the scoresheet in the match, with Brandon O'Rourke striking twice. Declan Viljoen was solid in goal as he made three saves, despite allowing two goals. The senior also made history as he broke the school record for most games played by a goalie in his 73rd career game.
 
The first half was a defense-heavy period. The Jets outshot RSU 5-4, but the Hillcats took all three shots on goal. Both teams competed well early with Louis Bassett nearly striking paydirt in the 13th minute, but Newman made the save. The two sides kept on attacking and in the 36th minute, Alex Fletcher took a shot at the upper right part of the goal but was saved. Things remained deadlocked at 0-0 going into the locker room.
 
The Hillcats came out on fire in the second half, as they scored three goals in a span of seven minutes. RSU outshot the Jets 10-9 in the second half with eight of the Hillcats' shots on goal compared to Newman's five. 
 
The first goal for RSU came 51 seconds into the period when Noah Preston-Watkins scored off a pass from senior Marcos Vasallo. The second came when senior Erik Hjertsson took a brilliant shot on the left side of the goal in the 51st minute. Just 17 seconds later, Brandon O'Rourke caught the Newman goalkeeper off his line and fired one into an open net. However, a minute later, the Jets got on the board in the 52nd minute to cut the deficit to 3-1. RSU answered in the 67th minute as they pushed the lead back out to 4-1 when Vasallo found the back of the net. Newman refused to go down without a fight and scored in the 70th minute, pulling back within two goals at 4-2.
 
With 10.7 seconds to play, O'Rourke scored his second goal of the night as he got behind the Jets keeper again to seal the 5-2 victory. With the win, RSU clinched their spot in the GAC/MIAA Tournament for the sixth-straight season.
 
The Hillcats return to the pitch on Saturday, Nov. 2 as they close out the regular season home schedule against No. 17 Fort Hays State. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.