Chippewa Valley Times

The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's soccer team secured a place in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Tournament championship game for the first time with a 4-0 win against UW-Whitewater. The match took place on Friday at Simpson Field.

Tobias Volkmann, a freshman from Three Lakes, Wisconsin, scored his first career hat trick to help the Blugolds advance to the conference championship game. The victory gives them a chance to compete for an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Volkmann opened the scoring in the 12th minute with assists from Nathan Donovan and Jacob Sampson. The score remained 1-0 at halftime. Early in the second half, Volkmann doubled the lead with help from Andrew Phillips and Tate McDermott in the 50th minute.

Carson Kowalski added another goal unassisted in the 57th minute, making it 3-0 for UW-Eau Claire. Volkmann completed his hat trick with a powerful strike from outside the box in the 80th minute.

Spencer Banks maintained a clean sheet as goalkeeper, making two saves during the match. This win means UW-Eau Claire has now defeated every WIAC team this season. Previously, they tied 2-2 with UW-Whitewater on October 30.

Next up for UW-Eau Claire is a match against second-seeded UW-Platteville on Sunday, November 10 at Simpson Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. The Blugolds previously defeated UW-Platteville 2-0 earlier this season and won against them in an NCAA Tournament regional final last year.

UW-Eau Claire aims for its third consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament.