GALESBURG — Gabriel Barros Lima assisted on both of the Carl Sandburg College men’s soccer team’s goals as the Chargers scored twice in the second half to beat Moraine Valley 2-0 on Saturday at Jorge Prats Field in a Region 4 Division II quarterfinal.
The Chargers (12-2-2), ranked 20th in the country and seeded second in the tournament, won their fifth in a row to advance to the semifinals. Sandburg will host No. 6 seed Rock Valley, which knocked off third-seeded Morton 4-3 in its quarterfinal, at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Jorge Prats Field on the campus of Knox College.
To get there, Sandburg needed to hold off a stingy Cyclones team, which came in as the No. 7 seed. The teams played a scoreless first half before the Chargers broke through on Saul Etienne’s goal in the 48th minute.
After taking a pass from Lima on the left side, Etienne split two defenders, dodged to his right and fired a shot under the crossbar for a 1-0 lead. It was the first shot on goal by either team to that point.
Moraine Valley’s best opportunity came on a free kick in the 61st minute, but Sandburg keeper Tian Poyo Capilla made a diving stop to his left to prevent it from going in the top corner.
A corner kick in the 86th minute helped the Chargers punch their ticket to the semifinals. Lima sent a corner into the box, where Felipe Da Silva Augusto headed it down and in for a late insurance goal.
Capilla earned a clean sheet — his fourth of the season — as Sandburg’s back line of Augusto, Sebastien Bornelu and Felipe Endo Dos Santos held the Cyclones to just four shots on goal in the match.
Weather permitting, Tuesday’s contest will be streamed on the Carl Sandburg College YouTube channel. The winner advances to the championship at noon Saturday at Madison. Tuesday’s other semifinal is No. 1 seed Prairie State hosting No. 5 seed Kishwaukee. The winner of the region tournament qualifies for the NJCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Championship from Nov. 12-18 in Tucson, Ariz.
REGION 4 DIVISION II MEN’S SOCCER TOURNAMENT
First round (Oct. 25)
Game 1 — No. 9 Waubonsee 2, No. 8 Triton 2 (Waubonsee won 4-2 on penalties)
Game 2 —No. 7 Moraine Valley 1, No. 10 Black Hawk 0
Quarterfinals (Oct. 28)
Game 3 — No. 1 Prairie State 3, No. 9 Waubonsee 1
Game 4 — No. 5 Kishwaukee 1, No. 4 Illinois Valley 0
Game 5 — No. 6 Rock Valley 4, No. 3 Morton 3
Game 6 —No. 2 Sandburg 2, No. 7 Moraine Valley 0
Semifinals (Oct. 31)
All matches at higher seed
Game 7 — Kishwaukee at Prairie State
Game 8 — Rock Valley at Sandburg
Championship
Noon Nov. 4 at Madison
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