Indianapolis, Ind. – Three East Coast
Conference men’s soccer teams were included in the field of
35 teams that will vie for a National Championship as announced by
the NCAA on Monday evening. ECC Champion, LIU Post, earns the top
seed in the East Region portion of the bracket, while Dowling
College and NYIT also earned berths into the NCAA Division II
Men’s Soccer Championship.
With a 17-1-2 record on the season, LIU Post swept both the regular
season and post-season ECC Championships for the second consecutive
season. As the top seed, the Pioneers and their high-scoring
offense led by ECC Offensive Player of the Year, Eivind Austboe (23
goals, 10 assists, 56 points), will be playing on their home field
and also receive a First Round bye.
The Pioneers will take on the winner of a First Round matchup
between ECC rivals, NYIT and Dowling. Dowling earned the No. 4 seed
in the East Region bracket after posting an 11-4-3 record and
advancing to the ECC Championship Final. The Golden Lions are back
in the tournament for the first time since 2010. Dowling, who won
the National Championship in 2006, is making the 13th NCAA
Tournament appearance in program history.
NYIT advances to the NCAA Tournament despite missing out on the ECC
Championship tournament. The Bears join the 2011 St. Thomas Aquinas
squad as the second ECC team in three seasons to pull off this
feat. NYIT, who posted a 13-4 record during the regular season, is
making the sixth NCAA appearance in program history and their
second berth in three years.
Dowling and NYIT last met on the pitch less than two weeks ago on
October 30. The Golden Lions were victorious in that match by a
score of 3-1.
LIU Post combined for a 3-0 record against both NYIT and Dowling so
far this season. The Pioneers defeated both in overtime during the
regular season and then beat Dowling once again in the ECC
Championship Final by a score of 3-0.
The other half of the East Region bracket includes No. 2 seed
Southern New Hampshire hosting No. 3 Post and No. 6 Wilmington.
First round play begins on November 14 with Dowling and NYIT
kicking off at 1 p.m. LIU Post will host the winner on November 16,
also with a 1 p.m. kick off.
To view the full NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Championship
bracket, click here.
