Missouri Valley men’s soccer celebrates first ever NAIA championship

MARSHALL, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Missouri Valley men's soccer arrived back on campus on Tuesday night after winning its first ever NAIA national championship. The Vikings were greeted to a big celebration at Gregg-Mitchell Field.

Missouri Valley beat Oklahoma Wesleyan 2-0 in the national championship on Monday night. Senior Luka Gluscevic was named the most valuable player of the tournament.

"It's a feeling we'll remember for our whole life," Gluscevic said. "When you think about it, at the end of the day, you just remember that you're national champions. You were part of an amazing group. I'll keep those moments my whole life."

Head coach Vladimir Simic just finished up his 19th season at the helm. He's led the Vikings to the national championship game three of the last four seasons.

"It's a great feeling to finally put my hands on the trophy after so many years of getting close," Simic said. "Finally, we did it man."

You can watch our full conversation with Coach Simic and Gluscevic in the video player below.

Missouri Valley arguably had the toughest road in the NAIA Tournament. Before beating No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan, the Vikings had to beat No. 2 Central Methodist. Prior to their semifinal match with the Eagles, Missouri Valley had lost twice to CMU this season - including in the Heart of America championship game.

"The main focus was for the games in the national tournament," Coach Simic said.

The Vikings were able to avenge those losses to CMU with a 4-2 win over the Eagles to advance to the championship match.

"We stuck together and believed," Gluscevic said. "We brought it home."

The Vikings finished the season with a record of 18-4-2.