GREENVILLE, Ill. – The Greenville men's soccer team is championship-bound. The Panthers punched their ticket to the SLIAC Final with a hard-fought 1–0 semifinal victory over Principia on Thursday afternoon at Francis Field. In front of a lively home crowd, Richard Kerwer's second-half finish lifted Greenville to a spot in Saturday's title match.

How it Happened:

1st Half

Greenville came out aggressive and confident, controlling the pace of play from the opening whistle. Izan Gonzalez Rivera fired two early shots that narrowly missed the target.

Juan Fernandez nearly opened the scoring in the 21st minute when his strike ricocheted off the woodwork, and William Carlson Webb followed with multiple dangerous attempts that kept the pressure on the visitors.

In goal, Tian Poyo stayed sharp, turning away the lone Principia shot on target to send the teams into halftime scoreless.

2nd Half

The Panthers maintained their momentum after the break, with Andres Garcia, Manolo Juarez, and Ben Wilcoxen continuing to test the defense. Greenville finally broke through in the 73rd minute when Garcia delivered a precise pass into the box for Kerwer, who finished calmly into the back of the net to ignite the Francis Field crowd.

Poyo and the Panther back line held strong down the stretch to secure the clean sheet.

Up Next:

With the win, Greenville (10-4-3, 6-0-2 SLIAC) advances to the SLIAC Championship Final, where the Panthers will look to capture the win at Francis Field on Saturday at 1 p.m. against Lyon College.