ARLINGTON HEIGHTS – Roosevelt men's soccer made sure it will play on the final day of its first season as an NCAA Division II program.

The Lakers entered this season knowing they were ineligible for the national postseason, so the latest they could play would be Sunday in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament. And on Friday evening, Omar Yousaf punched Roosevelt's ticket into the final with a header to lift the top-seeded Lakers over fourth-seeded Davenport 1-0 in the semifinals at Morris Field.

It was a fairly dominant effort from the Lakers even if the stats made it seem like a tighter affair. Roosevelt dominated possession for large swaths of the game, rarely conceding many dangerous looks to the Panthers. The Lakers led the way 16-10 in shot attempts and 6-4 in shots on target, and none of the four shots from Davenport really troubled Eric Carvajal.

The junior made four saves to extend his personal shutout streak to 364:43 over the past five games. Carvajal stopped three shots in the second half as Davenport searched for an answer, but the Panthers only attempted five shots total in the final 45 minutes. Davenport did have an early goal ruled out due to offsides, but otherwise relied on the long ball to test the rock-solid Lakers defense.

Roosevelt had its share of exciting moments before Yousaf's goal with the Lakers finding themselves in dangerous areas early and often. Yet it wasn't until the 42^nd minute when everything aligned for the Lakers, and it was GLIAC Defender of the Year Nick Kilian pulling the strings. The graduate student again was the maestro of the attack from his position on the wing, expertly putting the ball onto Yousaf's head and the freshman simply had to nod it home for his second goal of the year.

Not satisfied with just one goal, the Lakers had a plethora of chances to double the lead but barely missed the mark. It started with a low rocket from Marvin Lopez through traffic that the Panthers goalie was able to push aside. A few minutes later, All-GLIAC first-teamer Oskar Schuster barreled in on goal from the left side and his initial shot was saved in Sebastian Rodriguez's path, but the senior barely touched it wide.

Luca Swinton had the best chance that didn't go in for Roosevelt after winning a free kick 32 yards away from goal. The junior midfielder showed why he was a second-team all-conference choice with a laser that rang off the crossbar, stunning the Davenport defense and the crowd.

UP NEXT: Due to NCAA regulations regarding schools reclassifying, Roosevelt is ineligible for postseason play this year. The Lakers will therefore close out their season Sunday at 3 p.m. against second-seeded Saginaw Valley State at Morris Field in the GLIAC Tournament Final. Roosevelt claimed both regular-season matchups with the Cardinals this season, including a 1-0 victory in Arlington Heights two weeks ago.