November 27 (1981)

The University of Missouri-St. Louis men lose, 2-0, to unbeaten Tampa University in the NCAA Division II semifinals in New Haven, Conn. The Rivermen, bidding for their second national championship, fail to capitalize on several scoring chances with the wind at their backs in the first half. Tampa scores its goals with the wind behind it in the second half. Both goals are scored by Swedish imports Goran Swardh and Hans Oloffson. “The game was played very evenly but we did not cash in on our opportunities in the first half when the wind was behind us,” UMSL coach Don Dallas tells the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Tampa was a very skilled team. Their Swedish players were outstanding.” UMSL will lose the next day, 3-1, to Southern Connecticut State in the third-place game and will finish with a 13-6 record. Ironically, just six days before UMSL’s men lose to Tampa, UMSL’s women also lost in the national semifinals. The Riverwomen, who came into the semifinals with a 16-0 record, fell, 4-0, to Central Florida in the first-ever national college soccer championship tournament for women. Like UMSL’s men, UMSL’s women also lost in the third-place game. The tournament is sponsored by the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women. Women’s soccer will become an NCAA sport in 1982. The Riverwomen will reach the final four in 1982 and again will finish fourth.