The Dickinson men’s soccer team clinched the No. 5 spot in the Centennial Conference rankings after two crucial wins in the last week of the regular season.

The Red Devils posted a win in an overtime thriller against hosts Muhlenburg College on Wednesday night, October 26. Regulation time went by without many clear-cut chances, as both team were very even in terms of possession and shots on target.

The Red Devils wasted little time during overtime to put themselves on the board. Just one minute into overtime, Brendan McGovern ’20 finished off a pass from Danny Sheppard ’17, putting ball in the back of the net. It proved to be the only difference between the two teams as Dickinson eventually held on to win the game. Goalie Jeremy Palcan ’17 made 2 saves on the night.

The Red Devils returned to Miller Memorial Field to host No. 2-seeded Franklin & Marshall in a crucial final matchup to determine their postseason fate.

The Diplomats, who had only one loss in the entire regular season, are ranked second in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, but the Red Devils were not fazed by their opponent and came off firing on all cylinders.

Crisp and confident possessions led McGovern to score his second goal in two games, courtesy of yet another assist by Sheppard. McGovern then went on to score a brace, doubling the Red Devils’ lead with 25 minutes remaining in the match. This time the assist came from Ryan Brown ’19.

The Diplomats rallied to try and get back to the game but the resilient Dickinson defense held on. The Red Devils launched ferocious counterattacks at times that almost extended their lead even further. F&M finally scored their consolation goal two seconds from time but it was too little too late.

Despite having less possession time and fewer chances at the goal, the Red Devils came out on top with only 9 shots to the Diplomats’ 24 and three corners to the Diplomats’ 14. Palcan had quite a performance, posting 11 outstanding saves.

The Red Devils improved their standing to 8-7-2 overall and 5-3-1 in the Centennial Conference. They earn the #5-seed in the conference playoffs and have since travelled to Washington College on Wednesday for the first round of the tournament at 7 p.m.