DUBUQUE, Iowa (Duhawks.com) – The Loras College Men's Soccer team fell short in their attempt to win a fifth consecutive Iowa Conference Tournament Championship on Saturday night as the Knights of Wartburg College claimed the advantage in penalties 5-4. The two sides battled through 110 minutes of hard fought soccer, but neither side could gain the upper hand.

Both teams got off to a rough start unable to connect passes and utilize their offensive thirds in the first 45 minutes. With six seconds left in the first half, it was Wartburg that was the first to break the score. A failed clearing attempt resulted in Wartburg's Tyler Salzwedel getting the ball inside the penalty area and beat sophomore goalkeeper Adam Roloff to the near post.

After warming up in the locker room during the half, the Duhawks came out with high hopes for the second half. They pressured the Knights' goalkeeper, Austin Boyke, but struggled to find the back of the net once again.

In the 60^th minute, the Duhawks earned an indirect free kick from inside the penalty box when one of Wartburg's defenders fell to the ground and grazed the ball with his hand. Junior Jorge Simon and senior Tom Fluegel stepped to the ball, faced will 11 Knights in the goalmouth. Wartburg's Kyle Sprain was issued a yellow card after he came off the marked 10-yard line, blocking Simon's kick. On the retry, Loras found no luck, as Simon sent the offering high and above the goal.

Ten minutes later, the Duhawks' bad luck continued when junior Bryan Irwin drew a penalty kick for Loras as he was shoved to the ground. Looking to equalize, Pizzello missed from the penalty spot, leaving Wartburg ahead by one.

Luck would finally grace the Duhawks in the 77th minute when Fluegel made his way up the near line and laid the ball off into the box for Pizzello who did his part by beating two defenders and nailing home his shot to the far post for the equalizer.

The Duhawks found themselves trailing the Knights for the second time of the night going into the last 20 minutes of the game when the Knights struck back three minutes later. After a yellow card was issued to sophomore Calvin Miller, Kevin Krueger sent his free kick on goal where Jay Tegge was able to set up Zubeen Azari for the go-ahead goal.

Wartburg nearly increased their lead in the 81st minute when Azari found a hole in the Duhawk defense. Azari's shot from near the penalty spot forced Roloff to go completely outstretched, but he made the save to keep the deficit at one.

Building off that energy, Calvin Miller was able to find the equalizer in the 86th minute. Fluegel delivered the free kick into the penalty area and after a failed clearance by Wartburg, senior Josh Kutzke had his shot blocked up into the air where Miller beat Boyke to the ball and sent home the header to the back of the net.

Thanks to Miller's goal, the teams headed into overtime with the score tied at 2-2. The Duhawks dominated the offense in the first overtime finding five shots, while Wartburg was unable to put any on frame.

The second overtime was more evenly matched with both teams playing well in the midfield but unable to connect with their front lines. The Knights had their only shot attempt stopped by Roloff in the 100th minute while sophomore Austin Jacobi sailed the Duhawks' lone shot over the bar in the 104th minute.

With the game remaining tied at the end of the second overtime, the teams headed to penalty kicks to decide the championship. The Duhawks sent home three successful PKs from Simon, Fluegel, and Olson but were answered by Wartburg's Tegge, Nadeau, and Peter Tran. Jonah Jacke's attempt was stopped by Boyke and in combination with a conversion from Krueger to put them up 4-3. Brady Anderson sealed the deal for the Knights, beating Roloff, and lifting Wartburg to the Iowa Conference Tournament Championship.

With the tie, Loras moves to 15-2-2 on the season and will await the NCAA Selection Show on Monday to learn of their placement in the national tournament. Based on the latest NCAA Regional Rankings, the Duhawks are expected to claim of the Pool C bids.