COLUMBIA, Ky. - - The No. 3 seed Cumberland Phoenix had to take on the challenge of the top-seed and No. 4 ranked Lindsey Wilson Blue Raiders at their home field in Kentucky. Delivering on the highest of stages, the Phoenix shut out the favorites and claimed the MSC Tournament Championship, 2-0.

Lindsey Wilson created an opportunity in the first minute of the game as Sebastian Tregarthen ripped a shot, but keeper Jack McCarthy stayed collected and made the first stop of the game. 

Cumberland had the first opportunity of the game and it was a golden one as the Blue Raiders committed a foul in the box, resulting in a red card as well as a penalty kick. This allowed senior John Azar to step up to the spot and fire off a shot, but Lindsey Wilson keeper Pablo Costa guessed correctly and made the save to keep the game knotted at 0-0.

With the Blue Raiders down a man, their high flying offense was all but ground to a halt as they had to play in their half for much of the remaining time. By the time the first buzzer sounded both teams had only managed a single shot on goal, while less than ten total shots had been taken.

Though the first half had little in the way of action to offer, the second half was full of fireworks. In the 51st minute Cumberland found their first opportunity to score since the missed penalty, but this time Philipp Schmidtke gave no room for the keeper to make a save.

The freshman from Gifhorn, Germany was third-leading goal scorer for the Phoenix this season and at the most pivotal moment of the tournament, he kept his composure and rounded the keeper, slotting the ball calmly into the goal. Already playing a man down, the Blue Raiders were forced to turn their intensity up a notch and it cost them.

Attempting to win the ball in the midfield, Sadam Masareka made a poor challenge and the referee decided that it was worthy of a red card, ending his night prematurely. With more than thirty minutes left to play, Lindsey Wilson had to chase their elusive goal with only 8 outfield players.

Just ten minutes after the second ejection, Robbie Lyons found a way to continue what has been an incredible goal scoring month for the First-team All-Conference midfielder. Brima Kamara delivered a corner kick into the box and Lyons connected with the ball at the first post, giving the Phoenix another goal for safety.

Being forced to absorb pressure and hope for a counterattack opportunity, the Blue Raiders offered little in the way of attacking and the Phoenix held their ground. After trading cautions back and forth for the remainder of game, the MSC Tournament Championship ended in favor of the underdog No. 3 seed, Cumberland Phoenix.

With the win, the Phoenix earned an Automatic Bid to the NAIA National Championships. The field and host sites will be announced on Monday by the NAIA. This will be Cumberland's first trip to the NAIA National Tournament since 2021.