CROWN POINT, Ind. – The Roosevelt Lakers turned up the heat in the second half to take down Governors State 2-0 in the quarterfinals of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Association men's soccer tournament Friday night in Crown Point, Ind. 

The sixth-seeded Lakers (9-6-1) weren't outplayed in the first half necessarily, but the third-seeded Jaguars had the better of the chances. Yet Roosevelt came out renewed in the second half after getting to the intermission scoreless and began to dictate the pace more. Sebastian Rodriguez eventually broke through in the 63rd minute with his team-high 10th goal of the season to give the underdogs the 1-0 lead. Eduardo Hernandez added the insurance marker with 15 seconds remaining to seal Roosevelt's spot in the semifinals and avenge the regular-season loss to the Jaguars a month earlier on the same field.

Roosevelt held a 9-5 advantage in shot attempts over the final 45 minutes and were able to steer four of those attempts on target. The Lakers also won all five corners awarded in the half to continue mounting pressure on the Jaguars. Governors State outshot Roosevelt 7-4 in the opening half and forced Mario Graciano into three of his four saves on the night as the senior kept his fourth clean sheet of the season.

This marked the Lakers' first postseason victory since 2018 when Roosevelt defeated Judson in the conference quarterfinals. Roosevelt will now travel north to Milwaukee, Wis. to face Cardinal Stritch, the second seed in the tournament, on Tuesday. The Wolves took down Trinity International 4-0 in their quarterfinal. The Lakers and Wolves faced off in the first conference match of the season with Cardinal Stritch emerging with a 2-1 win at Morris Field on Sept. 13.