ST. LOUIS – Top-seeded Saint Louis (13-0-4) survived an instant defensive classic in the Atlantic 10 Men's Soccer Championship semifinals against No. 4 Fordham (7-9-3), battling the Rams to a 0-0 draw across 110 minutes of complete action before ousting the defending champs behind a 4-2 penalty kick shootout margin early Friday afternoon at Robert R. Hermann Stadium.

With the victory, SLU advances the program's sixth A-10 Men's Soccer Championship title match, squaring off against the winner of the league's second semifinal contest between No. 2 Rhode Island and sixth-seeded Duquesne at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 14. The contest will be broadcast live via ESPN+.

The Billikens consistently controlled the pace of the matchup throughout, outgunning Fordham by a 13-to-3 mark in total shots and an even more dominant 9-to-0 split in corner kicks. Notably, however, the Rams proved stout inside the box, surrendering just two shots-on-goal while only allowing just one of the nine corner kicks to actively play before earning the clear.

The defensively-focused contest eventually culminated in a penalty kick shootout following the conclusion of regulation as well as both overtime periods. Both Saint Louis and Fordham opened up with a pair of connections, but a save from the Billikens' Patrick Schulte – an A-10 All-Conference first-team selection – vaulted SLU into a narrow lead. The final Rams attempt ricocheted off the crossbar while Saint Louis strikers continued their perfect streak, sealing the victory for the undefeated regular-season champions.