HANOVER, Ind. – The Panthers advance to the NCAA Tournament in dramatic fashion Saturday afternoon, defeating no. 5 seed Defiance College in sudden death penalty kicks, 5-4. With the win, Hanover captured their second Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Championship in three seasons.
 
For his tremendous effort in frame, sophomore Luciano Salemi (Indianapolis, Ind.) was named the HCAC Tournament Most Valuable Player.
 
After being held scoreless for 110 minutes of action the HCAC Championship went to penalty kicks. Defiance got the first attempt as they were able to strike for the 1-0 advantage.
 
Senior Leonardo Bottura (Taubate, Sao Paulo, Brazil) countered knotting the PK count at 1-1 when the Yellow Jackets swarmed. DC was able to provide a pair of back-to-back blows that saw them capture the heart pounding 3-1 advantage.
 
The Panthers remained poise as freshman Joao Domenici (Alphaville, Brazil) delivered cutting the deficit to 3-2 before the Yellow Jackets stung once more.
 
Facing a 4-2 deficit, Salemi stepped-up big in frame capturing a pair of game altering saves that stole the momentum in favor of Hanover.  
 
In front of an electric crowd, senior Fellipe Busato (Sao Paulo, Brazil) stood tall providing the game winning blow in sudden death overtime that lifted the Panthers past Defiance in dramatic fashion.
 
Hanover finished the afternoon with a game-high 25 shots, nine of which landed on frame.
 
With the win, Hanover claimed the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and will await the results of the selection show to take place on Monday, Nov. 8 at 1:30 PM.