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The Charlotte 49ers are heading back to the Conference USA tournament final.

A 4-2 win for the third seed 49ers (ranked No. 14 in the nation) against No. 2 Old Dominion in the semis Friday gives them a date on Nov. 11 against No. 1 Kentucky. The Wildcats (No. 3 in the country) beat fifth seed Marshall 2-1 to advance to the final.

Charlotte went 1,026 minutes without conceding a goal before the Monarchs struck twice. Freshman striker Preston Popp gave the 49ers the lead late in the first half, but ODU midfielder Deniz Dogan and striker Max Wilschrey put the Monarchs ahead at the half. C-USA defensive player of the year Callum Montgomery equalized for the 49ers early in the second half and sophomore midfielder Joe Brito scored the game-winner in the 80^th minute. Senior striker Daniel Bruce secured Charlotte’s victory, as well as vindication for Charlotte’s 2-1 regular season loss in Norfolk, in the 85^th minute.

“We’ve had a bit of a better year,” Montgomery said. “This is my senior year, and it’s my last chance at this, so I’m giving it everything I have. We’ve shown a lot of grit and a lot of determination to come back from a result like tonight when we’re down 2-1.”

Charlotte coach Kevin Langan started a nearly identical lineup to their quarterfinal winning side, which beat Alabama-Birmingham 1-0 on Wednesday. The exception tonight was senior midfielder Dean Rutherford in place of Brito.

“Joe is an incredibly agile and skillful player,” Langan said. “When the game settles down a little bit, because obviously in the first 10-15 minutes both teams are fighting for territory and fighting for the ball, it can be a little bit crazy sometimes. That is not his strength. His strength is when we have the ball to feet and Teddy [Chaouche] and Tommy [Madden] can feed him, and he can get running and doing stuff. It was just trying to spare him from those first 10-15 minutes, but he can do that as well.”

Said Brito: “I’m obviously a smaller player. It’s good to let the bigger guys settle the game down, and then when I come in, just try to do my stuff, play on the ground, connect passes, take players on.”

Brito provided a spark for the 49ers off the bench against the Monarchs.

“Joe is the guy who wants the ball at his feet,” Montgomery said. “He wants to be creating. When he first came in he struggled with those “grey areas,” we call it, where it’s back forth—head tennis, but over time he has bought into how we need to play, and he’s realized that if he wants to play in the first 10-15 minutes, and wants to start, he has to do that. He has to battle for us. He’s done an unbelievable job for us recently.”

At 14-3-1, the 49ers lost to ODU, Kentucky and Radford. The Wildcats (16-1-1) beat them 1-0 in September in Kentucky. Charlotte enters the final with an 11-0 home record and an eight-game winning streak.

“Kentucky is a great team,” Montgomery said. “They are having an unbelievable season. I think it’s a great opportunity for us to go and knock them off their pedestal a little bit, and send a message to the rest of the country, hopefully.”

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