Fast and Furious - GPAC unbeaten clash doesn't disappoint

SIOUX CITY, IOWA – A household name and a new shining star found themselves among the headlines for Morningside College Wednesday, Oct. 28.

Junior forward Okan Golge (JR/Cologne, Germany) (Cologne, Germany) added to his remarkable collegiate resume, posting a goal in a sixth straight and seventh match in his last eight outings dating back to the end of 2019. His successful offensive strike broke up a scoreless tie on the Elwood Olsen Stadium scoreboard in the 21^st minute in a pivotal battle of Great Plains Athletic Conference unbeaten programs.

Freshman defender Jonas Markgofed (Frederikshavn, Denmark) produced a critical second goal for head coach Tom Maxon's Mustangs in the 71^st minute. Already having thwarted the Broncos' historically speedy and precise offensive attack for a large share of the clash, he took a perfectly-placed pass from the foot of senior midfielder David Dauschwili (JR/Berlin, Germany) (Berlin, Germany) and headed it over the top of HC goalkeeper Jesus Parra's out-stretched arms for a 2-0 Maroon lead, as a raucous home crowd turned euphoric.

"Okan is just money," Maxon admitted. "He gives us offense every time we need it. He's our rallying point. It's like having Shaq in the paint --- we give him the ball, and he takes over.

We could see Jonas' abilities coming," he added. "He played a great match --- he's a guy that can provide scoring from the back."

Holding a 2-0 advantage over the perennial league and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics powers, Maxon and the Mustangs realized they needed both goals and more defensive pressure. Hastings answered with a goal in the 84^th minute to make it 2-1 and maintained offensive control all the way down to the final seconds.

"I've got so much respect for the Hastings program," Maxon said. "They've been the toast of the conference for so many years. We'd seen something similar last year, getting a lead, and then they rallied back and tied it a few times before we won in overtime.

They do such a good job pressuring you early on in each half," he added. "They nearly scored two or three times in the first 20 minutes to start and then almost got a goal right off the whistle to start the second 45 minutes. We knew we had to survive those types of attacks because that's what they've tended to do."

Sophomore goalkeeper Bjarne Huth (SO/Bad Vilbel, Germany) (Bad Vilbel, Germany) managed to overcome a 15-7 shots advantage from the visitors with three saves on four shot on goal tries. Golge's two attempts, one of which found the Hastings net's back, led the Morningside offense.

Morningside (5-1, 4-0 GPAC) returns to action Wednesday, Nov. 4. Northwestern College comes to Sioux City for an 8 p.m. conference match.