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Senior Conor Smith and the Ephs play No. 1 Messiah on Friday in the semis

Williams College athetics

Two days to Texas

In less than two days, the women's Final Four in San Antonio kicks off with Friday morning semi-finals. Later on Friday, the men start their semi-final rounds, and on Saturday, we'll have two new national champions for 2009. Will the Messiah men make it two in a row? If so, they will have taken five of the last six national titles. And the Falcon women can repeat as well, having also won in 2008.

The NCAA Division III championship site for both men and women can be found here. This link provides information on live scores, video, and updated results.

In Friday's first match at 11:00 a.m., No. 1 Messiah and No. 9 The College of New Jersey go head to head as they have done in previous Final Four matches. In 2005, Messiah defeated TCNJ 1-0 for the national title, and in 2007 the Falcons won 2-0 in the semis before falling to Wheaton (Ill.) in the championship match. TCNJ also faced Wheaton in the final in 2006, but came away with a loss. For TCNJ, this is the fifth Final Four appearance in seven years and the Lions are ready to make this trip pay off. Should they make the finals this year, they will play at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.

At 1:30 p.m., No. 12 Washington University faces off against No. 21 Lynchburg. Earlier in the season, Lynchburg played Messiah to a 1-1 draw, giving the Falcons their best match of the season. Bear SID Chris Mitchell has prepared a thorough Washington University women's preview.

In the men's tournament, No. 1 Messiah is scheduled to play No. 13 Williams at 5:00 p.m., while No. 14 Dominican and Calvin face off at 7:30 p.m. The Williams College SID Dick Quinn has prepared a nice Williams preview of the the Williams/Messiah match, as well as thorough write-up on the Ephs season. Corey Furman of Messiah College has written up a tournament preview of the men's and women's teams. Click to read the Messiah men's preview, and here for the Messiah women's preview.

Yesterday's preview of the Dominican Stars is available in Notables, and below is a write up on Calvin's first visit to the Final Four. This was written with help from Calvin SID Jeffrey Febus.

The Knights of Calvin College are making their first-ever trip to the Final Four in men's soccer. Calvin, located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is the second team ever from the MIAA to advance to the Final Four as Alma also achieved the feat in 1999. Calvin and Alma shared the 1999 MIAA title but Alma grabbed conference AQ due a head-to-head tiebreaker. Alma's head coach in 1999 was current Messiah head women's soccer coach Scott Frey, who will also be in San Antonio this weekend.

Calvin is making its ninth appearance in the NCAA Tournament including its fifth under current head coach Chris Hughes. Calvin is 7-7-3 all-time in Division III Tournament play including going 4-3-3 under Hughes, who is in his eighth year as the Calvin men's soccer coach. A 1992 Calvin graduate, Hughes was a member of the Calvin men's soccer team and was a three-year starter on defense.

Heading into the Final Four, Hughes is 117-38-15 for a winning percentage of .718. After last season, Hughes was ranked 21st nationally in terms of winning percentage for active Division III men's soccer coaches. Coach Hughes has led the Knights to five MIAA titles, five trips to the NCAA Tournament and was named the Great Lakes Regional Coach of the Year in 2004.

Calvin has shared one common opponent with Dominican in the 2009 season; Wheaton (Ill.). While Wheaton edged the Stars 1-0 earlier in the season, Calvin defeated their non-conference rival 2-1 in September. Calvin then did it again, defeating Wheaton 2-1 in a first round tournament match at Wheaton.

Calvin had just as much success in their conference this season, capturing its 20th MIAA title in men's soccer. Heading into the final week of conference play, Calvin's MIAA title hopes were very much in doubt as the Knights trailed Hope by three points with two games left to play. Calvin then defeated Trine 3-2 while Hope tied Olivet 0-0 to allow Calvin to move within a point of Hope. Calvin then moved past Hope for the league title by defeating Hope 1-0 in the regular season finale for both teams, giving the Knights the league crown by two points. The Knights have proven an ability to win the close matches this season and that momentum has carried over to the post-season: Calvin is 2-0 in shootouts in the tournament, defeating Wartburg in a second round shootout and then downing Transylvania in a shootout on November 21 in the national quarterfinals.

In fitting fashion, Calvin recently celebrated its 50th year of varsity men's soccer. Calvin soccer got its start in 1959, and in 51 years of men's soccer, Calvin has an overall record of 509-248-68 for a winning percentage of .644.

Permalink | Dec 02, 2009

Sophomore Aaron Romo and the Dominican Stars face Calvin on Friday in the semis.

Dominican athletics

Dominican on the trail to Texas

It is hard to believe, but the 2009 men's and women's Final Four competition begins in just three days. While the season seems to have just started, eight teams are left to decide the national champion in San Antonio. All the action this weekend can be captured via live video. In the meantime, you can watch highlights of the 2008 men's championship match. The schedule for the weekend:

Women's targeted start times are 12:00 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. ET
No. 12 Washington U. vs. No. 21 Lynchburg
No. 1 Messiah vs. No. 9 The College of New Jersey

Men's targeted start times are 6:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. ET
No. 1 Messiah vs. No. 13 Williams
No. 14 Dominican vs. Calvin

We'll be doing a series of previews on the upcoming matches, as well as shining the spotlight on the two newcomers this year: Calvin and Dominican.

After getting as far as the Elite Eight in 2006 and bowing out in the second round of the playoffs in 2008, the Stars of Dominican are headed to the Final Four for the first time in program history.

The 19-1-3 Stars, members of the Northern Athletics Conference, have won the conference championship four years in a row. Dominican is located in the western suburbs of Chicago and began its collegiate soccer program in 1988. After time in the NAIA, the Stars are relative newcomers to Division III, becoming eligible for the playoffs within the past decade. This season marks their eighth straight year in the NCAA tournament. After a fourth straight undefeated season in the NATHC, the Stars are now 40-0-1 in regular season conference play with four regular season championships and NATHC Tournament championships.

Stars head coach Erick Baumann played at Dominican, graduating in 1993 and taking over as head coach in 1995. He is 255-61-19 all time at the school and is also the athletic director. During the season, coach Baumann has come to depend on the leadership qualities of his captains, as the 2009 Stars are a very young squad. Dominican has just three seniors, captains Stan Micic, Trinidad Correa, and Juan Saldana, and junior captain Michael Kapusta. Each of these players have started every match this season.

Kaptusta (31 points, nine goals) and sophomore forward Edwin Lagunas (25 points, nine goals) lead the team in scoring this season. Lagunas scored the lone goal in the Stars' second-round win against UW-Whitewater and had a goal in the first round against Elmhurst. Three others have scored eight goals for a team that is very young; Baumann says he starts seven freshmen or sophomores in every match. He certainly can count on the freshmen as Ryan Roberts scored the winner in the first round against area foe Elmhurst and Andy Lynch came up with the golden goal in the 100th minute of a Sweet 16 game at Loras. Roberts has eight goals on the season.

Dominican's only loss on the season was a 1-0 setback at Wheaton back on Sept. 16, while the ties were against Elmhurst, North Park and UW-Whitewater. "To the team, the ties felt a lot like losses," said coach Baumann, "we should have won those games." The lessons learned from those matches became clear as Dominican moved through the balance of the season with little trouble, and proceeded to eliminate Elmhurst and UW-Whitewater from the tournament in the first and second round. Other than Wheaton, those were the only NCAA playoff teams that Dominican had faced during the regular season. But throughout the year, the Stars have played a strong defense, allowing only nine goals all season, and just one in the first half of matches. This strength helped as the postseason developed as the Stars have allowed only one goal in the four matches since the tourney began.

The Stars are anchored by nation's third-ranked defense, posting a 0.38 goals against average in more than 2,100 minutes of play. Goalkeepers Ben Gomez (Bensenville, Ill.) and Maxwell Gutbrod (Slinger, Wis.) have split time for the Stars, although Gutbrod, a sophomore, has gotten the call in each of the last three games and has posted three shutouts. Gutbrod boasts an 8-0-1 record in goal with six shutouts, including three in the NCAA Tournament while Gomez, a junior, holds an 8-1-2 record with four shutouts.

After surrendering four goals in the team's first five contests, the Stars have tightened the screws on defense, allowing just five goals over the team's last 18 contests, spanning 1,681 minutes. Dominican has not allowed two goals in a contest all season, but has scored at least two goals 16 times, outscoring their opponents 70-9 on the season.

Offensively, Dominican has used an arsenal of weapons to replace four-year starters Matt Kochanowski and Plamen Pamukov whom the Stars lost to graduation after the 2008 season. The pair accounted for over a third of the Stars' offense since 2005, totaling 123 goals over four seasons. This year, the Stars' offense features five players with a minimum eight goals and 20 points.

Permalink | Dec 01, 2009

Messiah women's soccer spent all but two weeks atop the D3soccer.com Top 25 and are heading back to the semifinals.

Messiah sends two to Texas

First-timers Calvin and Dominican men, and Lynchburg women join the Messiah, Washington University, and College of New Jersey women, Messiah and Williams men
We started off the weekend with 32 teams in both men's and women's play. Now we have our eight teams for San Antonio: The Bears of Washington U. are making their second trip in women's soccer history to the national semifinals and Calvin is making its debut appearance, marking only the second MIAA men's program to advance this far (Alma made it in 1999). The Williams men are returning after a long break, and the College of New Jersey women return for the fifth time in seven years, Messiah will be sending both their men's and women's, and Dominican advances in a 2-0 defeat of Whitworth. Lynchburg finished off the list by advancing past Trinity in a shootout. Box scores and game summaries are all available both on the scoreboard and below.

Men's section play

Carnegie Mellon sectional Calvin is on the way to its first ever semifinal via after defeating Transylvania on penalty kicks. The two teams played to a 1-1 draw through regulation and two overtime periods. In the shootout, Ryan Bratt came up with three clutch saves for Calvin with freshman Chris Nance scoring the decisive goal in the shootout.

Messiah sectional: No. 1 Messiah defeated No. 8 Rochester 2-1 in the sectional final on Sunday. Messiah returns to the Final Four for their ninth time in ten years. In the match, Falcon Geoff Pezon scored with 3 minutes to play for the Messiah victory. The Yellowjackets finish their most successful season to date at 14-2-3.

York sectional: No. 13 Williams needed two overtimes and out-shot No. 4 Christopher Newport 4-1 on penalty kicks to complete the upset and make their way to the semifinals.

Loras sectional: No. 14 Dominican blanked No. 25 Whitworth 2-0 to advance to its first ever Final Four. Michael Kapusta and Ryan Roberts had goals for the Stars. Whitworth ends their season at 16-3-3.

Women's section play

Augustana sectional: Lee Ann Felder scored the go-ahead goal in the 57th minute as No. 12 Washington U. defeated Calvin 2-1 and is making their second semifinal appearance.

Trinity (Texas) sectional: No. 3 Trinity played No. 21 Lynchburg to a 1-1 draw, but fell to the Hornets in penalty kicks. Lynchburg advances to the Final Four for the first time in program history.

Johns Hopkins sectional: No. 1 Messiah ran past No. 8 Johns Hopkins 3-1 and will return again to the Final Four. The Falcons jumped out to a 3-0 lead before the Blue Jays scored in the 56th minute on a goal from Allie Zazzali. Erin Hench scored twice for Messiah, while teammate Amanda Naeher grabbed her 30th goal of the season.

Williams sectional: In the 70th minute Briann McDonough scored the only goal as No. 9 TCNJ blanked No. 25 1-0 to advance to their fifth Final Four in seven years. TCNJ's Jessica Clarke notched her 16th shutout of the season as she finished with five saves. Clarke has not allowed a goal in her last 702:33 minutes.

Permalink | Nov 19, 2009

Hardin-Simmons, Transylvania provide upsets; NCAA releases sites

Phil Proud scores the third goal in Rochester's 3-0 win over Plattsburgh

Rochester athletics

In today's second round action, the No. 3 and No. 5 ranked men's team in the country were upset by unranked opponents. Both Trinity and Ohio Wesleyan were expected to make deep runs into the tourney this season and now they'll watch as the post-season continues. All of today's wraps are below; we now have our men's and women's Sweet 16, and the next stop on the road to San Antonio is set.

Sites for this weekend's Sweet 16 round were released by the NCAA this evening. For the men, Messiah, York, Loras, and Carnegie Mellon will be hosting sectionals. For the women, the hosts are Williams, Augustana, Trinity (Texas), and Johns Hopkins.

Scoreboard: Check out Sunday's schedule, with links to audio, video and live stats.

You can review the complete NCAA brackets; the men's bracket and women's bracket can be downloaded at a click.

Here is a wrap of today's men's action - please scroll down for the women's summary:

No. 5 Trinity was upset by unranked Hardin-Simmons 2-0 this evening. After a scoreless first half, the Cowboys broke through with a goal from Chris O'Brien in the 78th minute, and then added a goal from Isaiah Hicks in the 83rd minute. No. 25 Whitworth was a 2-1 winner over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps colleges. Pirate Elly Bulega broke the 1-1 tie in the 83rd minute. Whitworth will face Hardin-Simmons on Saturday in the Sweet 16 at Loras College.

No. 1 Messiah was a 3-1 winner over Brockport State. No. 2 York shut out No. 24 Amherst 2-0. Antonio Bua had the game winner and Kemal Nuspahic added an insurance goal late in the match. No. 10 Johns Hopkins and No. 15 Salisbury played to a scoreless draw, but Johns Hopkins advances by winning the penalty kick round 5-4. Messiah and Johns Hopkins will face off in round three on Saturday in Grantham, PA.

No. 8 Rochester shut out Plattsburgh State 3-0. Scott Cady scored the go ahead goal in the 16th minute. Misha Carrel-Thomas and Phil Proud added two goals later in the match. No. 16 Wesleyan played Western New England to a scoreless draw, but advanced via a 5-4 win in penalty kicks. Rochester and Wesleyan will meet in round three on Saturday at Messiah College.

No. 6 Loras blanked Macalester 2-0 tonight. Miguel Bonilla had the game winner for the Duhawks. Thomas Jennings added a late goal in the win. No. 14 Dominican edged UW-Whitewater 1-0 on a goal in the 15th minute by Edwin Lagunas. The Stars will now face regional foe Loras on Saturday in Sweet 16 action in the Rock Bowl in Dubuque, IA.

No. 2 York was a 3-0 winner over No. 25 Amherst earlier today. Antonio Bua had the game winner for the Spartans in the 30th minute. Kemal Nuspahic added an unassisted goal in the second half. No. 18 Rensselaer fell to No. 13 Williams 1-0. The Ephs grabbed the winning goal on an early strike by Charles Romero. York and Williams will now meet on Saturday in the third round at York College.

No. 3 Ohio Wesleyan was upset by Transylvania 1-0. The Bishops outshot Transylvania 21-8, but couldn't get a second goal past Trey Kramer, who had five saves on the day. No. 11 Swarthmore edged No. 23 Hobart 2-1 in overtime. In the 32nd minute, a Hobart received a red card, and then in the 53rd minute, both teams had players ejected. Philippe Celestin had the game winning goal for Swarthmore in 107th minute. The Garnet will play Transylvania in a Sweet 16 match on Saturday at Carnegie-Mellon.

No. 9 Carnegie Mellon edged No. 22 Medaille 1-0. The Tartan's Ryan Browne scored the game winner on a penalty kick in the 67th minute of play. The Tartans now face Calvin on Saturday in round three action at home.

No. 4 Christopher Newport played No. 19 Lynchburg to a 1-1 draw, and then advanced by winning the penalty kick round 5-3. Michael Abbonizio put Lynchburg on the board early, and good defense kept the Captains off the board until the 87th minute, when Cliff Kipper grabbed the equalizer. No. 7 Montclair State was shut down by No. 12 Stevens 4-0. Terrance Johnson had two goals, including the game winner. Todd Sheridan and Zach Adler added a goal each. The Captains and the Ducks will clash in Sweet 16 action on Saturday at York College.

In women's matches this afternoon:

No. 1 Messiah hosted Endicott and had to fight for a 1-0 win and a spot in the Sweet 16. No. 6 Otterbein defeated No. 23 Denison 1-0 on a goal in the 31st minute by Lindsey Rudibaugh. Otterbein and Messiah will meet in round three on Saturday.

No. 2 Williams edged Oneonta State 2-1. After Oneonta took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Kayla Brantmeyer, Eph Sara Wild tied the score and teammate Annelise Snyder won the match in 80th minute. No. 15 Amherst was stunned by No. 9 The College of New Jersey 4-0. Williams and TCNJ will clash in the Sweet 16 on Saturday.

No. 3 Trinity blanked Maryville (Tenn.) 5-0, and No. 13 Hardin-Simmons defeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 3-1. Both teams will face off on Saturday in the Sweet 16.

No. 5 Augustana edged No. 22 UW-Stevens Point 1-0 on a goal by Katie Oakes. The Vikings will face Calvin this weekend in the Sweet 16.

No. 7 William Smith and No. 25 Ithaca played to a scoreless draw, and Ithaca won the penalty kick round 5-4 to advance. No. 11 Rowan shut out No. 20 Rochester 1-0. The Profs and Ithaca will meet on Saturday in round three.

No. 8 Johns Hopkins was a 2-1 winner over Eastern on an early goal by Jessica Hnatiuk. Erin Stafford added a goal in the 66th minute, and Eastern's Tess Beckwith attempted a comeback with her goal in the 87th minute. No. 19 Middlebury was a 2-1 winner over Wheaton (Mass.). The Panthers will face Hopkins on Saturday in the Sweet 16.

No. 10 Concordia-Moorhead bested Macalester 3-1. Sam Johnson had the game winner for the Cobbers in the 80th minute. No. 16 Washington & Lee fell 2-0 to No. 21 Lynchburg. Shelly Hoath had the game winner in the 24th minute, and Ashley Hoath added a goal in the second half. Lynchburg and Concordia will clash in round three on Saturday.

No. 12 Washington University needed overtime to advance past No. 17 Illinois Wesleyan 1-0. Elyse Hanly made the difference with her goal in the 92nd minute. This is the second straight year that the Bears have met the Titans in the second round and won. No. 18 Wheaton defeated Chicago 1-0 on Saturday to advance and will face regional rival Wash U this weekend.

Permalink | Nov 15, 2009

Ellen Coleman scored two goals for Rochester in the their 4-0 win over Westfield State today

Rochester athletics

Calvin men to Sweet 16 in PKs; Calvin, Wheaton women to round three

Saturday opened with a full slate of NCAA postseason action. Men's and women's matches started at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday and will continue through 9:00 p.m. EST. If you can't make it out to a match, listen to your favorite team by reviewing our complete list of weekend internet broadcasts on the Scoreboard. You can review the complete NCAA brackets; the men's bracket and women's bracket can be downloaded at a click.

Scoreboard: Check out Saturday's schedule, with links to audio, video and live stats.

In round two action, the Calvin men played Wartburg to a scoreless draw, but then won the penalty kick round 4-2 to advance to the Sweet 16. On Friday, Calvin defeated Wheaton (Ill.) 2-1, while Wartburg was a 2-1 winner over Chicago.

Scroll down for more of Saturday's men's action.

In women's matches today, No. 18 Wheaton got by No. 14 Chicago to advance to the Sweet 16, as did Calvin, edging Wittenburg 1-0 to move into round three.

No. 12 Washington U. defeated Webster 2-1 in overtime, No. 17 Illinois Wesleyan shut out Carroll 1-0, No. 22 UW-Stevens Point edged St. Thomas 1-0, and No. 5 Augustana was a 2-1 winner over Albion.

No. 15 Amherst defeated Eastern Connecticut State 3-0, No. 9 TCNJ blanked Plattsburgh State 2-0, No. 2 Williams blanked Keuka 5-0, and Oneonta State defeated Skidmore 1-0. Wheaton (Mass.) blanked Richard Stockton 2-0, and No. 10 Concordia-Moorhead was a 2-0 victor over Dubuque.

No. 20 Rochester blanked Westfield State 4-0, No. 11 Rowan shut out MIT, No. 13 Hardin-Simmons upended No. 4 Puget Sound 1-0, and No. 1 Messiah cruised past Farmingdale State 6-1.

In the men's tournament:

No. 6 Loras hosts Macalester in the regional final on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. Earlier, this evening, Loras defeated Webster 3-1, and Macalester shutout Grinnell 2-0.

No. 4 Christopher Newport will host No. 19 Lynchburg for the regional championship on Sunday at 6:00 p.m. Earlier, Lynchburg blanked Catholic 3-0, and Christopher Newport shutout Cabrini 4-0.

No. 14 Dominican will face UW-Whitewater in the regional final at 2:00 on Sunday. On Saturday, Dominican defeated Elmhurst 2-1 in overtime, on an overtime goal by Ryan Roberts. Whitewater scored on an own goal in overtime to defeat St. Olaf 1-0.

No. 15 Salisbury to host No. 10 Johns Hopkins in the regional final on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Johns Hopkins shut out Misericordia 2-0, and Salisbury dumped Virginia Wesleyan 4-1. Alex Hargrove had two goals for the Sea Gulls and keeper Josh Scotton had five saves for the win.

No. 16 Wesleyan will play Western New England in the regional final on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Earlier, Wesleyan blanked St. Joseph's 2-0, and Western New England bested Babson 1-0 in very wet conditions.

No. 2 York (Pa.) and No. 24 Amherst will face off in the regional final on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Earlier today, York cruised by Cazenovia 6-0, and Amherst blanked Salem State 4-0.

No. 9 Carnegie Mellon will host Medaille on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. On Saturday morning, Medaille shut out Denison 3-0, and Carnegie Mellon beat back Thomas More, 4-2.

No. 18 RPI will host No. 13 Williams in the regional final on Sunday 1:00 p.m. Earlier, Williams shut out Husson College, and RPI got by Eastern Connecticut State 1-0.

No. 11 Swarthmore will host No. 23 Hobart in the regional final on Sunday at 6:00 p.m. Earlier today, Hobart edged by St. Joseph's, and Swarthmore defeated Merchant Marine 2-1.

No. 25 Whitworth will play Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in the regional final on Sunday at 4:00 p.m. PST Earlier, Whitworth blanked Chapman 2-0, and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps upset No. 20 UC Santa Cruz 2-1.

More regional finals from Thursday's matches:

No. 1 Messiah will host Brockport State on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in Grantham, No. 3 Ohio Wesleyan will see Transylvania on Sunday at 6:00 p.m., and No. 5 Trinity is hosting Hardin-Simmons on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. No. 8 Rochester will host Plattsburgh State on Sunday at 1:00 p.m., and No. 12 Stevens will travel to No. 7 Montclair State for the regional final on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

Permalink | Nov 14, 2009

Calvin knocks out Wheaton; Chicago women advance

Senior Alex McKenzie had the game winning goal in Calvin's 2-1 win over Wheaton on Friday

Cavin athletics

Three sites are hosting NCAA postseason matches today: Chicago and Calvin hosted first-round women's action, and Wheaton is hosting first-round men's action tonight. Check out the complete NCAA brackets; the men's bracket and women's bracket can be downloaded at a click.

Scoreboard: Check out Saturday's schedule, with links to audio, video and live stats.

In Wheaton, Wartburg edged past Chicago 2-1 in the first match of the evening. Freshman Brandon Cook has the game winner for the Knights in the 61st minute. Nate Gottsacker grabbed the assist on the play. In the second match, Calvin defeated Wheaton 2-1 on a goal by Alex McKenzie in the 78th minute. Wheaton had tied the match minutes earlier on a goal by senior Matt Swartz on a restart just outside the Knight box.

Calvin and Wartburg will play in the regional final. The match is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Saturday.

In Grand Rapids, Calvin blanked Washington and Jefferson 4-0, and Wittenberg was a 3-1 winner over Ohio Northern.

Calvin will host Wittenberg in the regional final on Saturday at 1 p.m.

In Chicago, Wheaton (Ill.) was a 3-1 victor over Carleton. Ali Kopelman grabbed the game winner for the Thunder. In the second match, Chicago shutout Aurora 2-0. Junior Sarah Loh and freshman Marquel Reddish scored first half goals for the Maroons. Chicago hosts rival Wheaton in the regional final on Saturday at 1 p.m.

In men's action from Thursday:

Plattsburgh State advances past Bowdoin on PKs. Plattsburgh State and Bowdoin played to a scoreless draw, but Plattsburgh took the penalty kick round 6-5, advancing to the second round of the postseason. Bowdoin ends their season at 11-4-2, while the Cardinals move to 13-2-6 and will face No. 8 Rochester on Sunday.

Hardin-Simmons defeated Mary Hardin-Baylor 2-0. Hardin-Simmons now faces No. 5 Trinity (Texas) on Sunday afternoon. In the match, after a scoreless first half, Chris Hunter scored in the 79th minute for the game winner, and Isaiah Hicks added an insurance goal for the Cowboys. Today's win was the first NCAA postseason victory for the Cowboys in five tries. HSU improves to 11-2-6, while Mary Hardin-Baylor ends the season at 14-4-1.

Transylvania defeats Capital 2-1 in overtime. In the match, Transylvania was ahead 1-0 at the half on an early goal by Brian Williams. The Crusader's Steven McCarthy scored to tie the match in the second half, but Pioneer junior Tony Spero grabbed the game winning goal in the ninth minute of overtime to end the match. Capital ends their season at 16-5-2, while Transy improves to 15-3-1 and moves on to face No. 3 Ohio Wesleyan on Sunday.

Brockport State advances past Ohio Northern on PKs. Ohio Northern and Brockport State played to a 1-1 draw and needed penalty kicks to determine a winner. Golden Eagle junior Joe Marino made a diving save in the third round to help his team capture the win and advance to the second round of the tournament. Brockport improves to 10-5-4 and will face No. 1 Messiah on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in Grantham. Ohio Northern wraps up its season at 15-3-3.

Stevens over York (N.Y.) 2-0. No. 12 Stevens improves to 16-3-1 with its 2-0 shutout of York (N.Y.). The Ducks will now face No. 7 Montclair State on Sunday. York ends its season at 12-8. Michael Quijano and Todd Sheridan scores for Stevens, which outshot York 25-1.

Permalink | Nov 13, 2009

Brockport State celebrates their PK win over Ohio Northern today

Brockport State athletics

HSU, Stevens, Transy win; Brockport and Plattsburgh advance via PKs

The 2009 NCAA Road to San Antonio kicked off with five men's matches and one women's match on Thursday. And it was a day for the SUNYAC, as both Brockport State and Plattsburgh State advanced. The rest of the field begins play on Friday or Saturday. Stay tuned to D3soccer.com for continuous coverage and updates throughout the weekend.

Also check out the NCAA men's and women's brackets: The men's bracket and women's bracket can be downloaded at a click. Comment on the latest news and join the post-season discussion on our message boards.

Scroll down for today's results. We have tried our hand at a few predictions, which you can see and judge on the Daily Dose.

In women's action, Maryville (Tenn.) over Mary Washington 3-2. Maryville hosted Mary Washington and edged out a 3-2 victory. Maryville will now face No. 3 Trinity (Tex.) at 16-0 on Saturday.

Plattsburgh State advances past Bowdoin on PKs. Plattsburgh State and Bowdoin played to a scoreless draw, but Plattsburgh took the penalty kick round 6-5, advancing to the second round of the post-season. Bowdoin ends their season at 11-4-2, while the Cardinals move to 13-2-6 and will face No. 8 Rochester on Sunday.

Hardin-Simmons University defeated University of Mary Hardin-Baylor 2-0. Hardin-Simmons now faces No. 5 Trinity on Sunday afternoon. In the match, after a scoreless first half, Chris Hunter scored in the 79th minute for the game winner, and Isaiah Hicks added an insurance goal for the Cowboys. Today's win was the first NCAA post-season victory for the Cowboys in five tries. HSU improves to 11-2-6, while Mary Hardin-Baylor ends the season at 14-4-1.

Transylvania University defeats Capital 2-1 in overtime. In the match, Transylvania was ahead 1-0 at the half on an early goal by Brian Williams. The Crusader's Steven McCarthy scored to tie the match in the second half, but Pioneer junior Tony Spero grabbed the game winning goal in the ninth minute of overtime to end the match. Capital ends their season at 16-5-2, while Transy improves to 15-3-1 and moves on to face No. 3 Ohio Wesleyan on Sunday.

Brockport State advances past Ohio Northern on PKs. Ohio Northern and Brockport State played to a 1-1 draw and needed penalty kicks to determine a winner. Golden Eagle junior Joe Marino made a diving save in the third round to help his team capture the win and advance to the second round of the tournament. Brockport improves to 10-5-4 and will face No. 1 Messiah on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. in Grantham. Ohio Northern wraps up its season at 15-3-3.

Stevens Institute of Technology over York (NY) 2-0. No. 12 Stevens improves to 16-3-1 with thier 2-0 shutout of York (NY). The Ducks will now face No. 7 Montclair State on Sunday. York ends their season at 12-8. Michael Quijano and Todd Sheridan scores for Stevens, who outshot York 25-1.

Permalink | Nov 12, 2009

Commonwealth champs Messiah poll at No. 1

The Hardin-Simmons women moved up to No. 13 in the Top 25 after capturing the American Southwest Conference title

Hardin-Simmons photo

The busy conference championship weekend created more than a few changes in the final regular season D3soccer.com Top 25 poll. With the Ohio Wesleyan men falling in the NCAC tournament, Commonwealth champ Messiah regains the top spot, joining the Falcon women atop the national polls.

Remember that the NCAA men's and women's brackets were announced on Monday. Matches kick off on Thursday. The men's bracket and women's bracket can be downloaded at a click. Comment on the latest news and join the post-season discussion on our message boards.

In the men's poll, CAC champion York (Pa.) moved up to claim the No. 2 spot, while Ohio Wesleyan falls to No. 3. In the women's poll, the top four spots are all unchanged with NESCAC champ Williams at No. 2, SCAC champ Trinity (Tex.) at No. 3, and NWC champ Puget Sound at No. 4. Here are the complete D3soccer.com Top 25 men's and women's polls.

Christopher Newport won the USA South and moves up one to No. 4, and SCAC champion Trinity (Tex.) improves one to No. 5. Loras falls to No. 6, NJAC winner Montclair State skips two spots to No. 7, No. 8 Rochester holds, Carnegie Mellon moves up two spots to No. 9, and Centennial champ Johns Hopkins jumps five positions to No. 10.

In the women's poll, CCIW champion Augustana moves up three to No. 5, their highest ever national ranking. OAC winner Otterbein jumps four to No. 6, Liberty League champ William Smith jumps five to No. 7, and Centennial winner Johns Hopkins also moves up five to No. 8. NJAC champion TCNJ is at No. 9, while Concordia-Moorhead falls to No. 10.

For the men, Northwest Conference champion Whitworth breaks into the poll for the first time this season at No. 25. AMCC winner Medaille and Liberty League champ Hobart both return to the poll this week.

Some notable moves in the women's poll as Virginia Wesleyan enters the poll for the first time at No. 24, and Ithaca returns at No. 25. ODAC champ Washington & Lee moves up five spots to No. 16, and Chicago jumps six spots to No. 14.

Nine programs have teams in both polls this week: Messiah, Trinity (Tex.), Rochester, Johns Hopkins, Williams, Lynchburg, Hobart/William Smith, Amherst, and Wheaton (Ill.).

This is the first season of the D3soccer.com Top 25 poll, which is voted on by a panel of 25 coaches, Sports Information Directors and media members from across the country. The Top 25 poll is published weekly throughout the regular season.

Permalink | Nov 09, 2009

Jevon Gondwe and the Messiah men join the Falcon women in the postseason to defend their 2008 national championship.

Messiah athletics photo

Brackets released for road to San Antonio

Now we know who is in the 2009 NCAA Tournaments, both men and women. And we know who they will play and where.

The In fact, the men's bracket and women's bracket have been released and can be downloaded at a click.

Trinity (Texas) got the women's bracket's sole first-round bye and awaits the winner of Mary Washington at Maryville (Tenn.), while defending champion Messiah hosts a four-team regional and starts with Farmingdale State. Three NESCAC teams are hosting women's regionals. One at-large bid went to Wheaton (Mass.), which qualified for the 10th consecutive year.

In the men's bracket, defending champion Messiah got one of the five first-round byes and will host either Brockport State or Ohio Northern. The other byes went to Rochester, Trinity (Texas), Montclair State and Ohio Wesleyan.

The NCAA also released the final men's and women's regional rankings, a ranking that has previously been kept secret.

Men's tournament field

Automatic bids: AMCC: Medaille, ASC: Hardin-Simmons, CAC: York (Pa.), CCIW: Wheaton (Ill.), Centennial: Johns Hopkins, CSAC: Cabrini, CUNYAC: York (NY.), CCC: Western New England, Empire 8: Stevens, GNAC - St. Joseph's (Maine), HCAC: Transylvania, IIAC: Wartburg, Landmark: Catholic, Liberty League: Hobart, LEC: Eastern Connecticut State, MAC Commonwealth: Messiah, MAC Freedom: Misericordia, MIAA: Calvin, MIAC: Macalester, MASCAC: Salem State, MWC: Grinnell, NAC: Husson, NEAC: Cazenovia, NESCAC: Williams, NEWMAC: Babson, NATHC: Dominican, NCAC - Denison, NJAC: Montclair State, NWC: Whitworth, OAC: Capital, ODAC: Lynchburg, PAC: Thomas More, SCAC: Trinity (Texas), SCIAC: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Skyline: St. Joseph's (L.I.), SLIAC: Webster, SUNYAC: Brockport State, UAA: Chicago, USA South: Christopher Newport.

The Pool B teams, which are not members of conferences with automatic bids, are:

West Region: UC Santa Cruz (13-4-2), Chapman (11-4-2)
North Region: UW-Whitewater (11-5-3)

The Pool C teams, which are the true at-large selections, are follows:

NESCAC: Amherst (11-3-1), Bowdoin (11-4-1), Wesleyan (11-1-4)

University Athletic Association: Carnegie Mellon (14-2-1), Rochester (12-1-3)

American Southwest: Mary Hardin-Baylor (14-3-1)
Capital Athletic: Salisbury (14-3-1)
CCIW: Elmhurst (12-3-4),
Centennial: Swarthmore (14-2-2)
IIAC: Loras (16-2-1)
Landmark: Merchant Marine (15-3)
Liberty League: RPI (13-2-2)
MIAC: St. Olaf (13-4-2)
NCAC: Ohio Wesleyan (18-1-2)
Ohio Athletic: Ohio Northern (15-3-3)
Old Dominion: Virginia Wesleyan (14-3-3)
SUNYAC: Plattsburgh State (13-2-5)

Go ahead and share your opinions about who made it and who was left out of the postseason tournament on our message boards.

Women's tournament field

In addition to the conference AQs, here are the women's postseason participants:

Pool B: UC Santa Cruz, St. Scholastica

Pool C: Amherst, Calvin, Chicago, Concordia-Moorhead, Denison, Illinois Wesleyan, Lynchburg, Macalester, Middlebury, Muhlenberg, Ohio Northern, Oneonta State, Plattsburgh State, Richard Stockton, Rochester, Rowan, Skidmore, St. Thomas, Virginia Wesleyan, Wheaton (Ill.), Wheaton (Mass.).

Permalink | Nov 09, 2009

Season sealed: NCAA playoff announcement to come

Terrence Johnson scored the late game winner to lead Stevens 2-1 over Nazareth in the Empire 8 final.

Stevens athletics

NCAA Men's AQ winners: Babson, Brockport State, Cabrini, Calvin, Capital, Catholic, Cazenovia, Chicago, Christopher Newport, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Denison, Dominican, Eastern Connecticut State, Grinnell, Hardin-Simmons, Hobart, Husson, Johns Hopkins, Lynchburg, Macalester, Medaille, Messiah, Misericordia, Montclair State, Salem State, St. Joseph's (Maine), St. Joseph's (L.I.), Stevens, Thomas More, Transylvania, Trinity (Tex.), Wartburg, Webster, Western New England, Wheaton (Ill.), Williams, Whitworth, York (NY) and York (Pa.)

Conference tournament play wrapped up across the country today with 38 or 39 conference champions decided this weekend. Later this evening, the NCAA will release the men's and women's postseason information, with brackets and pairings available on Monday. Go ahead and share your opinions about the post-season, and check out the complete list of who's in, and who is hoping for Pool C, on our message boards.

Scroll down for all the results from men's conference action on Saturday, as well as a rundown of today's championship matches. You will find the women's results and summary here.

In Wisconsin today, two candidates for Pool B consideration squared off, and in the end, UW-Whitewater pulled off an upset, blanking UW-Oshkosh 1-0. Luke Buchholz had the winning goal for the Warhawks.

Empire 8: No. 14 Stevens defeated Nazareth 2-1 to win the Empire 8 title. Terrence Johnson had two goals, including the game winner with just 1 minute and 10 seconds to play in regulation; Bryan De Farla had the assist in the goal that ultimately sent Stevens to their seventh straight trip to the post-season.

NESCAC: Williams defeated Middlebury 2-1 in overtime to take the conference title and AQ. The Ephs led 1-0 until Middlebury evened the score with a goal in the 91st minute, sending the match into overtime. The match was settled when an attempt to clear by Middlebury resulted in an own goal.

NEWMAC: Babson edged by Wheaton 2-1 in the conference final. Beavers Jimmy Stento and Dan Fogarty combined to score the game winner in the 76th minute. Peter Crowley had five saves as Wheaton outsot Babson 24-12.

Presidents' Athletic Conference: Thomas More shutout Washington & Jefferson 1-0 to win the conference championship. Aaron Osborne scored the game winner in the seventh minute off a feed form Joey Tensing. W & J made a late push with a Dan Hart shot that was deflected by a defender to preserve the shutout. Goalkeeper Zack Lawson had three saves to preserve the shutout.

North Eastern Athletic Conference: Cazenovia needed two overtime periods to get by University of Dallas 2-1 in the conference final.

American Southwest Conference: Hardin-Simmons captured the ASC championship with a 4-2 PK victory over Mary Hardin-Baylor after the two teams played to a scoreless draw.

Skyline Conference: St. Joseph's defeated Old Westbury 2-1 to capture the conference AQ for the second year in a row.

Saturday conference finals:

Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference: Medaille wins the tournament, shutting out Penn State-Behrend 1-0. Maverick Josh Meier scored the lone goal in the 79th minute for the win.

Capital Athletic Conference: No. 4 York fought off Stevenson 2-1 to win the CAC AQ. Brett Sauerberger scored his second goal of the season and the second of the game for the Spartans, who have won three of the last five CAC championships and with the conference's AQ, will be making their fifth-straight appearance in the NCAA post-season.

CCIW: No. 20 Wheaton and Elmhurst ended double overtime in a 2-2 draw, but Wheaton advances by winning the PK round 3-1. Elmhurst's Matt Sterner picked up a key goal in the 83rd minute to even the score and force overtime.

Centennial Conference: Johns Hopkins scored once in each half to defeat Dickinson 2-1 and capture the conference AQ.

Colonial States Athletic Conference: Cabrini jumped out to an early lead and defeated Immaculata 2-0 to win the championship.

Commonwealth Conference: No. 2 Messiah defeated Arcadia 4-1 to take the conference championship.

The Commonwealth Coast Conference: Four different players scored for Western New England in their 4-0 win over Wentworth. This is WNE's third-straight championship.

CUNY Athletic Conference: York (NY) defeated Hunter 1-0 to win the conference title and the AQ.

Freedom Conference: Misericordia blanked Manhattanville 1-0 after a Joey Scanlon goal in the 13th minute to win the conference title.

Great Northeast Athletic Conference: The St. Joseph's Monks edged Emerson 2-1 to win the GNAC Championship.

Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference: Transylvania defeats Hanover 2-1 to win the HCAC Championship. This is the fourth HCAC title that Transylvania has won in the past five years.

Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: No. 3 Loras was upset 2-1 by Wartburg, sending the Knights to the NCAA post-season. Duhawk Miguel Bonilla picked up his 17th goal of the season in the 50th minute. Wartburg's Kyle McKenna tied it in the 79th minute after heading a home a Brandon Cook cross. In double overtime, Luke Prater scored off Brandon Cook's second assist of the night in the 108th minute.

Landmark Conference: Catholic shutout Scranton 3-0 to win the conference AQ. Goalkeeper Brandon Dombrowski earned the clean sheet making eight saves. This marks the first Landmark Conference title in Cardinal's history.

Liberty League: Hobart defeated Union 2-1 in double overtime for the conference AQ. Statesman Kevin McCarthy scored in the 106th minute off an assist from Tony Yeboah. McCarthy was also named the Tournament MVP.

Little East Conference: Eastern Connecticut wins the AQ, defeating UMass Dartmouth 1-0.

Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference: Salem State earns a shutout against Westfield State 1-0 to win the conference championship. Jared Barbosa scored a goal in the 78th minute to earn the win. Salem State's goalie Luis Marques earned Tournament MVP honors.

Midwest Conference: Grinnell advances past Beloit after a 3-2 PK decision. After double overtime, Grinnell and Beloit were tied 2-2. Stephen Craig nailed the deciding shot in the PK round.

Macalester clinched the MIAC Men's Championship with a 1-0 victory over Carleton; the women's teams for both schools face-off tonight at Macalester under the lights (more photos).

Photo by Caleb Williams for D3sports.com

Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: Macalester blanked Carleton 1-0 for the championship crown. Scott Petesch picked up the lone goal of the match (photo gallery).

New Jersey Athletic Conference: Montclair State won the the NJAC with a 1-0 shutout of Rowan. Senior Will Griffin headed in a throw-in from junior Mike Krol in the 16th minute for the win and the AQ (photo gallery).

Northern Athletics Conference: No. 17 Dominican University defeated Milwaukee School of Engineering for the conference championship by a score of 1-0. The Stars got out to an early lead on a Leo Elizalde goal in the second minute.

North Atlantic Conference: Husson defended it home pitch and defeated Castleton 3-1 to win the North Atlantic Conference Championship.

North Coast Athletic Conference: In a major upset, No. 1 Ohio Wesleyan falls in two overtimes to Denison 2-1. Denison takes the AQ, and Ohio Wesleyan is a lock for a spot in Pool C.

Ohio Athletic Conference: Capital tied their match with Ohio Northern with a pair of second half goals by Ian Warmbrodt, and goalkeeper Daren Scarberry made four saves during the PK round as the Crusaders won their first ever OAC tournament title.

Old Dominion Athletic Conference: No. 22 Lynchburg defeats Roanoke 3-1 to win the conference championship. Roanoke went up early on but Lynchburg answered back with three second-half goals.

Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: Claremont defeated Redlands 2-1 to win the conference tournament.

St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: Webster blanks Greenville 1-0 to win the SLIAC title.

SUNY Athletic Conference: In a defensive struggle, Brockport State and Plattsburgh State played to a 0-0 draw after two overtimes. In the PK round, Brockport advances after an 11-10 decision, capturing the conference AQ.

University Athletic Association: The University of Chicago won a complicated three way tie-breaker with Rochester and Carnegie Mellon to capture the UAA AQ.

USA South Athletic Conference: Christopher Newport took the USA South championship by out-scoring North Carolina Wesleyan on penalty kicks, 4-2, after battling to a 1-1 double overtime tie.

Wheaton College (Ill.) student Josh Weaver contributed to this story

Permalink | Nov 07, 2009

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