Goshen, IN — The Goshen College men’s soccer senior night festivities were done up so big Saturday evening, the party couldn’t be contained to the Goshen College Soccer Complex.

In fact, reverberations from the bash were felt all the way to Indianapolis.

After beating Mid-Central Conference foe Indiana Wesleyan University by a 3-1 count in front of an over-capacity crowd in its final regular-season home match, Goshen got word of welcomed news from the state’s capital city: Marian College had defeated Bethel College by a 1-0 score down South, knocking the Pilots out of first place in the MCC and giving Goshen control of the conference race heading into the final week of regular-season play.

For Leafs’ seniors James Graber and Nick Loewen, it was quite the sendoff.

“At the beginning of the season I told the squad that we needed to play well at home and even better away from home,” said Tavi Mounsithiraj, Goshen head coach. “Tonight we played just well enough to get a big MCC win over a very good Indiana Wesleyan University side. It was a special night for us because we wanted to send out James Graber and Nick Loewen with a victory in front of another awesome crowd. It turns out it was even more important than we first thought.”

The heightened relevance of Saturday’s MCC matches were due in large part to Goshen (12-1-1, 5-1) fighting Bethel (7-5-3, 4-1-1) for sole possession of first place in the league, as the Pilots handed Mounsithiraj’s squad its only loss of the season to date (a 1-4 defeat on Sept. 30, click here for match recap). After Bethel dropped a tie decision to Taylor early in the conference season, Saturday’s loss to the Knights in Indianapolis — coupled with the Leafs’ win over Indiana Wesleyan — gave Goshen a half-game lead in the ultra-tight MCC race. Should the Leafs win out this week (the team plays at Marian on Tuesday and at the University of St. Francis on Saturday) Goshen will have captured its first regular-season MCC Championship since the 1990 season.

“This win was just fantastic and the team was just great, but we have two tough matches on the road this week,” Mounsithiraj said. “I know we still have work to do and we still need to do the little things better. It only gets harder from here on out.”

Saturday against Wesleyan, the raucous crowd appeared to will the team to a win. Playing in front of over 1,000 spectators, the Leafs turned in a dominating performance, though the Wildcats showed true grit throughout: Despite getting one of Goshen’s best efforts of the season, Indiana Wesleyan hung tough through the majority of the match.

“IWU has some great individual players and they were tough for us tonight,” Mounsithiraj said. “Fortunately, we went out and played really good soccer, the kind of soccer that I know we’re capable of playing. We are still not where we want to be, but I am pleased with the way we played tonight.”

Goshen took control of the match from the opening kickoff, forcing Wesleyan to chase the ball for much of the first half. Junior Joel Miller showed initial signs of taking over the game with 15 minutes remaining in the first period, a premonition that turned out to be true. Freshman Raad Qumsieh took a corner kick in the game’s 30th minute, sending a high, curving ball into the Wildcat goal box. Indiana Wesleyan’s goalkeeper and a dropped defender could not reach the floater, but Miller’s six-foot-four frame had no such troubles. Miller leaped high above everyone else, heading the ball directly toward the ground, causing a violent spike that ended with the ball in the top of the Wesleyan net. It was enough to send Mounsithiraj leaping, though it would be the lesser of Miller’s two goals on the night.

“If you would have told me that Joel would have made an even more incredible goal in the match at that point, I would have told you (that) you’re crazy,” Mounsithiraj said. “It was an amazing goal!”

Miller’s bouncer remained as the event’s only score at the intermission, though Indiana Wesleyan did not seem intimidated. Following a resounding halftime performance by the Goshen College choirs, it was Wesleyan that came out determined in the second half, scoring an equalizer goal just four minutes in, stunning a crowd seemingly on the verge of exploding.

“With a one-nil lead I knew that we just needed to play good defense and keep going forward whenever there was space, but IWU got a big score off a shot right in front of our net just a few minutes into the second half,” Mounsithiraj said. “It was up to our squad to regroup. I told them we needed to play better than (we did) in the first half.”

Enter — again — Joel Miller.

The 2004 MCC Defensive Player of the Year was once more an offensive threat in the 56th minute, this time taking a direct kick from Qumsieh for what amounted to possibly the most awe-inspiring goal of the season for the Leafs.

With Qumsieh taking the kick from the right side, the crafty forward sent a low-liner just inside the 18-yard box, keeping the ball apparently out of play for anyone. That was until Miller raced in from virtually nowhere, leaping head-first toward the ground and redirecting Qumsieh’s knee-high send toward the Wesleyan goal. With two Wildcat defenders helplessly watching from no more than five yards away, Miller’s header knifed into the corner of the net, sending off a frenzy in the Goshen College Soccer Complex stands that trickled all the way down to Mounsithiraj and his staff.

“I thought the first goal by Miller was great, but no he didn’t!” Mounsithiraj said. “The second was even better. The coaching staff was in awe. I can’t describe it.”

Judging from the remaining minutes in the match, neither could Indiana Wesleyan. Miller’s second score seemed to deflate the Wildcats, as Goshen began to gain complete ball control as time continued to elapse. Qumiseh — already with two beautiful assists on the night — was able to convert a nifty one-on-one, breakaway score at the match’s 72nd-minute mark, all but sealing the win for the Leafs.

“I am so happy for our program and our fans,” Mounsithiraj said. “This was such a great win for us in our last (regular-season) home match.”

The victory capped a perfect regular-season MCC record at home (4-0) for Goshen, a feat the team accomplished last season in league road matches. The Leafs now turn their attention to a talented Marian team on Tuesday, when the squad will travel to Indianapolis for a 3 p.m. match. For a detailed look at the current conference standings, click here.

Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund Update: Proceeds from Saturday’s match served as a donation to NAIA institutions in need following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Per the association’s request, the Goshen College athletic department selected the event as part of a nation-wide relief effort. Goshen collected over $550 throughout the evening. For more information on the NAIA Katrina fund-raising efforts and the involvement of Goshen College athletics, click here.