Central Islip, N.Y. – With the conclusion
of regular season play, the brackets for the 2014 East Coast
Conference Men’s and Women’s Soccer Championships are
now set.
Each game will be played on campus sites. Tournament action begins
on Wednesday, November 5 when the women's semifinals kick off and
will conclude with the men's championship game on Saturday,
November 8.
The LIU Post women's and NYIT men's teams are the top seeds and
will have home-field advantage throughout the tournament if they
advance to the final.
Men’s
Soccer
NYIT is the top seed in the tournament after sharing the ECC
Regular Season Championship with an 8-1-1 record (12-2-1 overall).
This marks the second time in program history, with the only other
instance occurring in the 2002 season, that the Bears earned a
share of the regular season title. After missing the conference
championship a season ago, the Bears look to capture their second
championship in the past four seasons.
NYIT's opponent in the semifinal will be the No. 4 seed, Molloy.
Despite an under .500 overall record (5-10-2), the Lions earned the
fourth and final spot in the field with a 5-4-1 mark in ECC play.
This is the Lions' first appearance in the tournament since winning
the conference title after the 2008 season.
Two-time reigning ECC Champion, LIU Post (8-1-1 ECC, 13-3-1
overall), receives the No. 2 seed after sharing the ECC Regular
Season Championship with NYIT. The Pioneers come into tournament
play hot, having won nine consecutive games.
The Pioneers will play No. 3 seed Dowling (7-3-0 ECC, 10-5-2
overall) in a rematch of last season's ECC championship game. The
Golden Lions, who are looking for their first ECC Championship
since the 2010 season, fell 2-1 to LIU Post in their previous
meeting this season.
Women’s
Soccer
On the women’s side, LIU Post continued an odd trend by
winning the conference's regular season title with an 8-0-1 mark
(14-1-1 overall). Going back to the 2008 season, the Pioneers have
won the ECC Regular Season Championship in every even year after
failing to do so in an odd year. Like the Dowling men's team, the
Pioneers will be looking for their first ECC championship since the
2010 season.
In the semifinals, LIU Post will face off against the reigning ECC
champions, Bridgeport. The Purple Knights didn't clinch their spot
in the bracket until a 3-0 win over Molloy on the final weekend of
the season. LIU Post took home the regular season matchup between
the schools by a final score of 2-1.
Joining LIU Post as a semifinal host is Mercy (7-1-1 ECC, 14-2-1
overall). The Mavericks make their second straight and second
overall appearance in the ECC Championship. Last season Mercy
advanced to the championship game with a thrilling overtime victory
over Queens.
Their semifinal opponent this time around will be No. 3 seed,
Dowling (7-1-1 ECC, 11-3-2 overall). The Golden Lions will attempt
to win their third ECC crown in four years after missing the
tournament a year ago. Mercy and Dowling tied in the ECC standings,
but due to the Mavericks' 1-0 regular season victory, Mercy will
host the semifinal matchup.
All games during the championship will be broadcast live on the
ECC website. To read twitter updates throughout the tournament,
follow us @ECCsports. Tournament recaps, highlights,
interviews, and box scores will also be available on
www.eccsports.org at the tournament specific web pages.
2014 East Coast
Conference Men’s Soccer Championship
Semifinals – Thursday, November
6
No. 4 Molloy at No. 1 NYIT - 1:00 p.m.
No. 3 Dowling at No. 2 LIU Post - 1:30 p.m.
Final – Saturday, November 8
at highest remaining seed - time TBD
2014 East Coast
Conference Women’s Soccer Championship
Semifinals – Wednesday, November
5
No. 3 Dowling at No. 2 Mercy - 1:00 p.m.
No. 4 Bridgeport at No. 1 LIU Post - 1:30 p.m.
Final – Friday, November 7
at highest remaining seed - time TBD
