Great weekend in Division III soccer. Most of the Top 25 teams advanced, but Ohio Wesleyan and Trinity (Texas) both fell unexpectedly. But in OWU’s case, perhaps everyone underestimated Transy. they have played good soccer this season, but not with a tough enough schedule to get them ranked too highly in the NCAA regional polls. Nor did they capture the fancy of the Top 25 weekly voters. But Transy deserved some attention as they have performed well in this post-season; the team is well coached and has strength in the net. And while not a high scoring team, they have come through when needed. Now for a match on Saturday against No. 11 Swarthmore.

Hardin-Simmons might be even less likely to be in the Sweet 16. While Trinity did lose one match early on, the Tigers had been playing well enough to get through the first two rounds. And HSU was coming off a bruising battle with Mary Hardin-Baylor. But the Cowboys were convincing with a 2-0 win. This is a new mark for the American Southwest Conference as no at-large bid has ever been picked out of the conference – and thus no at-large bid has ever made it into the third round. In their match against No. 25 Whitworth on Saturday, the Cowboys do have a shot at advancing. It may be that Trinity will be a great warm up for the Northwest Conference champs.

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