By Diego Ocando – With one game left in the regular season, the Morningside Mustangs are in their best form of the year, just when it matters most. Last Saturday, the team galloped to a 5–1 road victory over Doane, extending their unbeaten streak to four matches, with three wins in that stretch. Now, the Mustangs sit in fourth place in the GPAC standings, but with one game remaining, they still have a shot at finishing as high as second before playoffs begin.
The Mustangs’ offense exploded in the win against Doane. Senior Jordan Bickel, who leads the team with seven goals opened the scoring, followed by goals from Tobias Allerstorfer, Gustavo Dos Santos, who found the net twice, and freshman Elis Olden. The team looked composed, confident, and hungry from start to finish.
Gustavo Dos Santos, one of the top assist leaders in the GPAC and the Mustangs’ primary playmaker, continues to shine with his trademark joga bonito flair. Meanwhile, Spanish forward Javier Ruchelli has been on fire, scoring five goals in his last three games.
Now, everything comes down to the final day of the regular season on Wednesday, October 29, when Morningside travels to Mitchell, South Dakota, to face Dakota Wesleyan at 5 p.m., a matchup with major playoff implications.
The top eight teams in the GPAC qualify for the postseason, but finishing in the top two offers a huge advantage: home-field advantage until possibly meeting the No. 1 seed. For a team that’s been playing with confidence at home, that could be a game-changer.
As the regular season comes to a close, Morningside still has a realistic chance to climb to second place in the GPAC standings. The math is simple, but the margin for error is thin:
- Morningside must win their final match against Dakota Wesleyan.
- Midland must not win against Hastings (a draw or loss works).
- Concordia must not win against Doane.
If those results line up, the Mustangs would finish with 20 points, just behind Northwestern, who currently leads the table with 22.
Finishing second would not only represent a strong turnaround for the Mustangs but also give them home-field advantage for much of the GPAC tournament — a key edge as they chase a deep postseason run.
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