After a match in which Bowdoin dominiated in the stats column, the Polar Bears gave up a goal in the 88th minute to allow Lynchburg back in the run. Throughout the match, Bowdoin had opportunites off good shots, but found the crossbar (and other objects) instead. So at 1-1, the golden goal opportunities begin.

Here is the summary from James Derrick:

Second half ends in thrilling manner, albeit after long spells of boredom. The long-ball finally paid off for Bowdoin as Ben Brewster slotted home a roller, after connecting with Bishop’s chip into the box. Bowdoin had few chances following, but Lynchburg was just as lacking in their offensive third. A long Lynchburg cross into the box with two minutes on the clock found Scott Coleman, and his shot, after taking a cruel deflection off of Bishop, found its way past Dan Hicks for an unbelievable equalizer, in unbelievable fashion. With the momentum, and large spells of attacking, Lynchburg may very well be on their way to the National Championship.

Bowdoin soccer · d3soccer · Lynchburg soccer · NCAA Final Four soccer

What a match thus far! Messiah up 2-1 and dangerous on every attack. But Oshkosh has had two of the best opportunities of the half: a one on one with the keeper early, and an open net, both missed. But after going down 2-0, the Titans continued the pressure and finally converted late.

James Derrick, one of our D3soccer.com writers, has this to say from Texas: Messiah’s Renko is one of the reasons the Falcons may win this match. His distribution has been very effective. Another reason is Messiah’s use of the field -going wide frequently, and to speedy mid-fielders Black and Ramirez.

But Messiah will have to keep an eye on Starnes. He is fast and has great touch, and he had a chance (a great chance) to make this one 1-0 early. He will be in the mix in the second half. But Oshkosh has to watch how Messiah is using the width of the pitch to spread out that strong Oshkosh defense.

The second half is set to begin, so we’ll see how things work out. If Messiah scores again early, it may be too much for the Titans.

Messiah soccer · NCAA mens final four · Oshkosh soccer

The 2010 season has now come to this: the final four teams on each side, fighting for that elusive NCAA National Championship trophy. That piece of hardware is not easy to capture in any sport, much less in a crowded field like soccer. But today, we’ll see that crowded field work its way down to two men’s sides and two women’s sides. And in the process, we’ll see if that coveted trophy has a chance at landing somewhere other than in Grantham, PA.

Friday’s action begins at 11:00 and doesn’t wrap up until 9:00 p.m. or so. Our own scoreboard will keep you updated, but the NCAA will also be streaming live video, so there really isn’t an excuse for not diving deep into this year’s tournament.

We love this stuff too, so D3soccer.com has three hardy souls spending the warm weekend in San Antonio. We’ll be posting photos, match stories, and interviews all weekend long, so check back with us for the complete story.

Enjoy the competition, the action, and the true nature of the sport that is played purely for the love of the game. That’s the spirit of NCAA Division III athletics, and that’s what we are all about.

D3 soccer · NCAA Final Four · NCAA soccer

All of us at D3sports.com hope that the Thanksgiving holiday was a special time for you, and your friends and family. It is a great time to remember to never fall into the habit of overlooking those good things we sometimes take for granted.

Have you finished reading about the NCAA football second round playoffs on D3football.com? Or perhaps you’ve been reviewing the first few weeks of the new basketball season on D3hoops.com? Hey, it’s time to swing the spotlight back over to soccer, San Antonio, and the Final Four! And we’ll give you some good reasons to do so.

In the next few days, we will be releasing previews of the Final Four teams, as well as a look back at the Championship Tournaments from 1980, 1990, and 2000. And of course, we will take a close look at the semifinal matches.

So check back often and we’ll be there to help you get a grip on all the facts around the action coming up in Texas.

2010 soccer final four · D3 soccer championships · NCAA soccer · soccer San Antonio

With today’s tough-it-out 2-1 win over No. 8 Emory, the Cowgirls of Hardin-Simmons University now move into new territory, but not on unfamiliar ground.

No. 2 Hardin-Simmons has been to the Elite Eight once before in 2006. That run ended in a 3-0 loss at eventual national champion Wheaton (Ill.). Ironically, Wheaton was in the HSU sectional this weekend, but a rematch was not in the cards as Emory advanced past the Thunder on PKs. But four years later and with an injury-free line-up, Coach Marcus Wood was ready to push his team farther into post-season play and get the Cowgirls into position for a run at the national title. With Friday’s 2-0 shut-out of upstart Redlands, and Saturday’s victory over a strong Emory team, Coach Wood and his team have their chance.

While Hardin-Simmons will now be thinking about that Final Four tournament experience in two weeks, what they don’t have to worry about is the in-state trip to San Antonio. The team has been there before, playing SCAC foe Trinity over 10 times in past seasons. While the tournament matches will be played across town at the Blossom Soccer complex, the Cowgirls should feel at home.

This is a great story and a nice outcome for a program that has been a national competitor for over five years, slowing building a solid tradition of soccer excellence. The only thing left to do is to wait for Sunday’s results, and then to win just two more matches. With no disrespect for Williams, Otterbein, William Smith and others, a No. 1 versus No. 2 match-up in the final would be something to see.

D3 soccer · Hardin-Simmons · texas soccer · women's soccer

Those two wins by Medaille on Saturday and Sunday were impressive. And not having appeared in the Top 25 all season, they caught a lot of folks by surprise. You might wonder if the Mavericks are for real, but this is the Sweet 16; certainly not a spot that is easy to fall in to. Especially against Rochester and Swarthmore.

On Saturday, they beat No. 21 Rochester 1-0 in a fairly evenly matched game. Rochester is a defensive team, and so the 1-0 score makes sense, but the Yellow Jackets also score enough to keep things even. And then Sunday, they took out No. 7 Swarthmore in penalty kicks. In that match, the Garnet seemed to have the upper hand with a 26-15 shot advantage, yet upon closer examination, the shots-on-goal spread is tighter; 10 shots to 6. Nick Kurtz for Medaille stopped every one of those 10 shots, some more difficult than others. So what led to all those shots that didn’t make it on goal? Perhaps the large advantage in corners? 16-6 can make a big difference in setting up opportunities to score. But in the end, Kurtz was just hot in the net that night. A hot keeper and a team with a defensive plan and some speed, means that life will be tough for any opponent for those 90 minutes on the pitch, even a top 10 program.

So with the AMCC championship under their belt, and a well-earned Sweet 16 spot, the Mavs get to face Mr. Pezon and Company on Saturday.

Yes, the No. 1 Falcons are beatable. They have had way too many close matches this season for anyone to think that these guys are dominating every match. But in a surreal way, that seems to be a comfortable part of their plan, as it appeared to be last season as well. And two years ago, they took the title in penalties against Stevens. So with their veteran group of the Thompsons, Ramirez, Black, Woodworth, Pezon, and others, all used to last minute heroics, the Falcons will face a team that came close to taking them out in 2008 – and perhaps a team that is plenty used to pressure, heroics, and perhaps more importantly, a healthy dose of confidence that they really can beat anyone.

So how will the Mavericks respond? And was the Medaille run really the story of the first two rounds?

Perhaps, but the Babson win over No. 12 Williams in overtime was impressive, and Lynchburg’s 2-1 win over No. 9 Emory was truly surprising. Any others?

AMCC · Geoff Pezon · Medaille · Messiah · Nick Kurtz · Rochester · Soccer · Swarthmore

Here is one of those great Division III student athlete stories that comes to light every year across the country. This one comes from Mark Adkins, SID at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa. The Knights play in the IIAC and are coached by Sara Johnson. Read on…

Challenges are something Katy Wendt relishes.

Her collegiate career is full of them. As examples, the junior from Bettendorf, Iowa, has one major (psychology) carries two minors (Spanish and English literature). She isn’t only dedicated in the classroom where she averages just under a 4.0, but also enjoys the game of soccer as part of a busy extra-curricular calendar that includes tutoring children in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls area in English as a second language.

“You can’t look back at or change a transcript,” Wendt said. “There are so many opportunities. I just want to be a part of as many of them as I can be.” Through all of that, her two biggest interests are soccer and helping people. “I would play soccer 24/7 if I could,” she said with a smile. “I got into (the sport) early. My older brother, Ryan, and I used to make two goals and a small field in the living room of our parents house when we were around five years old. After that, when I was eight, I started on club teams and have been playing ever since.”

Her hard work has paid off. Going into this weekend’s NCAA Division III tournament, she leads the Knights (14-5-1) with 15 goals, nine assists, 39 points, and five game-winning goals. Her goals and points totals rank among the top 76 in the nation.

“I just like giving 100 percent to everything I do,” she said. “I give it all I can.”

That same mindset carries her off the pitch. She hopes someday to practice law, possibly even for Hispanic-speaking clients. “My education always comes first, because I want to keep my future options available,” Wendt said. “I took as many classes as I could early, so I could get into some more particular concentrations these last two years. “I’ve always liked Spanish,” she added. “It was a big part of my high school career, so I decided to carry it on in college. It’s led to one of the most amazing experiences I’ve had … taking a trip to Mexico during May Term in 2008-09. We had to work at a school and help with some projects in the town of Cuernavaca. It was great working to help make their lives a little better. We even got to play some soccer with the children. It was fun.”

After finishing in Waverly, she looks to get into law school to begin designs on her career. “There are many possibilities in the area I’m looking into,” Wendt said. “It would be great to help out in some way.”

Soccer · Wartburg

Well, now that the dust has settled at Swarthmore, we can share our Pool C predictions. The writers at D3soccer.com don’t all agree on all of this, but we are on the same page generally (so to speak). It is always a challenge to replicate the conditions of the committee and their parameters, but we think the following teams most deserve a shot at San Antonio.

Our scenarios assume that UW-Oshkosh and UW-Whitewater will grab the two available Pool B berths.

These are locks:
Bowdoin (NESCAC)
Emory (UAA)
Wash U (UAA)
Williams (NESCAC)

These are highly likely:
Muhlenberg (Centennial)
Amherst (NESCAC)
Rochester (UAA)
William Paterson (NJAC)

So that is 8 out of 17. It gets trickier from here:

Likely:
Johns Hopkins (Centennial) – the Centennial should get the benefit of the doubt after last year’s snub of Dickinson and Muhlenberg. No such dilemma this year as Hopkins is the best next option after finalists Muhlenberg and Swarthmore.
North Carolina Wesleyan (USA South) – At No. 5 in the South Atlantic they were ahead of Montclair State coming into the week, and a conference final loss to Christopher Newport shouldn’t change that.
Macalester (MIAC) – 4-1-0 record versus ranked teams, but perhaps the weakest of the “likely” choices.

Now we have 11. 6 more to count.

Bubble teams – our bias is that these teams are in, but also on the edge:
Merchant Marine (Landmark) – Not sure they or Drew are post-season material, but given Drew was No. 2 in the Mid-Atlantic coming into the week, we think one of them gets in. Merchant Marine won the head-to-head Landmark semifinal which we think pulled them even with Drew and could be the tie-breaker even though Drew won the regular season match.
Oneonta (SUNYAC) – Neck and neck with Hamilton, but Hamilton’s semifinal Liberty league loss to St. Lawrence dropped their record versus ranked teams to 1-2-0 while Oneonta is 2-2-2 with their tie in the SUNYAC semifinal.
Mary Hardin-Baylor (ASC) – Had six matches versus regionally ranked teams, going 3-3-0 while UC Santa Cruz went 1-1-1 in three such matches. MHB edges Santa Cruz despite the ASC semifinal loss this weekend.
Calvin (MIAA) – They edge Kenyon and Hamilton for one of the final spots on the basis of superior record versus ranked teams (3-2-0).
Heidelberg (OAC) – Despite their OAC final OT loss to ranked Ohio Northern, we think they nose ahead of Kenyon who lost to unranked Denison in the NCAC semifinals. But could go either way as they have vey similar numbers and were No. 2 to No. 3 in the Great Lakes region.
Eastern Connecticut (LEC) – Not sure it’s deserved but we think the New England region, which is never underrepresented, will get a fourth berth.

So there are our 17. Here are those teams on the edge that we think will be left out of the bracket.

Bubble Teams left out:
Hamilton (Liberty) – just edged by Oneonta – see comments above.
UC-Santa Cruz (Independent) – Not sure Santa Cruz’s win over a NAIA program combined with Mary Hardin-Baylor’s ASC semifinal loss to eventual champion UT-Tyler is enough for the Slugs, starting at No. 4 in the West, to edge MHB who was No. 2 in the region.
Drew (Landmark) – pushed out by conference rival Merchant marine – see comments above.
Kenyon (NCAC) – pushed out by Calvin – see comments above.

Just don’t have enough to to be considered:
Brockport (SUNYAC) – just too low a strength of schedule to really compete for a berth with a so-so 1-1-1 record versus ranked teams.
Wheaton (CCIW) – way too many blemishes on their record, but ranked No. 4 in the Central due to the weakness of the region and their high strength-of-schedule; they were 2-5-2 versus ranked teams.
Carnegie Mellon (UAA) – perhaps good enough, but too deep in the UAA to get in.
Montclair State (NJAC) – eight blemishes is a lot even with a high strength-of-schedule.
Salisbury (CAC) – we can’t understand them having been ranked only No. 8 in the South Atlantic (probably down to being only 1-2-2 versus ranked teams), but that was always going to be hard to overcome this week without winning the CAC title and AQ in the process. Two ties going to PKs wasn’t enough.

So what do you think? Give us your thoughts, and we’ll see how good we really are at 2 p.m. ET on Monday.

Babson · Bowdoin · Division 3 soccer · Messiah · NCAA national champions · NCAA soccer

The NCAA has released their second of three regional rankings that begin to form the basis for at-large invitations to the postseason. As conference tourneys appear on the horizon, the NCAA regional rankings list will be the guide for those early eliminations.

The post-season selection announcement will be webstreamed live on NCAA.com Monday, November 8 at 2 p.m. Eastern time.

Central
Region Record Overall Record
1. Washington U. in St. Louis 12-1-3 13-1-4
2. Dominican (Illinois) 16-1-1 16-1-1
3. Calvin 12-2-3 13-2-3
4. Wheaton (Illinois) 8-5-3 10-6-3
5. North Park 10-3-2 10-4-2
6. Hope 10-5-2 11-5-2
7. Carthage 8-6-2 11-6-2

East
Region Record Overall Record
1. Stevens Institute of Technology 11-1-3 12-1-3
2. New York University 10-2-4 10-2-4
3. Rochester (New York) 7-2-5 9-2-5
4. St. Lawrence 12-2-2 14-2-2
5. Hamilton 9-2-3 9-2-3
6. Plattsburgh State 12-4-2 13-4-2
7. Oneonta State 11-4-3 11-4-3
8. College at Brockport 12-2-2 12-2-2
9. Rensselaer 9-3-4 9-4-4

Great Lakes
Region Record Overall Record
1. Ohio Wesleyan 11-0-2 14-1-2
2. Kenyon 13-1-1 14-1-2
3. Heidelberg 13-3-2 13-3-2
4. Case Western Reserve 11-5-3 11-5-3
5. Ohio Northern 15-4-1 15-4-1
6. Carnegie Mellon 8-4-1 10-4-1
7. DePauw 13-1-2 13-1-2
8. Capital 12-5-0 13-5-0

Mid-Atlantic
Region Record Overall Record
1. Messiah 15-1-0 16-1-0
2. Swarthmore 14-1-2 14-1-2
3. Drew 11-2-3 12-2-3
4. Muhlenberg 10-1-6 10-1-6
5. Johns Hopkins 11-3-3 12-3-3
6. Merchant Marine 9-2-4 9-2-4
7. Franklin & Marshall 9-3-3 9-3-3
8. Elizabethtown 11-2-1 12-2-2

New England
Region Record Overall Record
1. Bowdoin 12-1-2 12-1-2
2. Williams 11-2-2 11-2-2
3. Amherst 11-1-3 11-1-3
4. Middlebury 12-3-0 12-3-0
5. Babson 12-3-2 12-3-2
6. Eastern Connecticut State 13-3-2 13-3-2
7. Bridgewater State 12-4-0 12-4-0
8. MIT 10-2-2 10-2-2
9. Westfield State 14-3-0 14-3-0
10. Wheaton (Massachusetts) 9-5-3 10-5-3
11. Brandeis 9-6-1 9-6-1
12. Keene State 12-4-2 12-4-2

North
Region Record Overall Record
1. Wisconsin-Oshkosh 14-0-3 16-0-3
2. Wisconsin-Whitewater 11-1-2 12-1-3
3. Augsburg 12-4-1 13-4-1
4. Macalester 14-3-1 14-3-1
5. St. Scholastica 15-3-2 15-3-2
6. Loras 12-6-0 13-6-0
7. Dubuque 14-3-0 14-4-0

South Atlantic
Region Record Overall Record
1. Emory 12-1-2 14-1-2
2. William Patterson 13-3-2 13-3-2
3. York (Pennsylvania) 15-4-0 15-4-0
4. Christopher Newport 13-1-1 17-1-1
5. North Carolina Wesleyan 11-2-2 12-3-2
6. Montclair State 12-4-2 13-4-2
7. Richard Stockton 14-5-2 14-5-2
8. Salisbury 11-3-3 12-3-3

West
Region Record Overall Record
1. Trinity (Texas) 16-1-0 17-2-0
2. Mary Hardin-Baylor 12-3-1 12-3-1
3. Pacific (Oregon) 10-2-3 13-2-3
4. UC Santa Cruz 7-3-2 10-5-3
5. Hardin-Simmons 10-5-0 11-5-0
6. Texas-Tyler 10-3-1 10-3-1

No tags

The NCAA has released their second of three regional rankings that begin to form the basis for at-large invitations to the postseason. As conference tourneys appear on the horizon, the NCAA regional rankings list will be the guide for those early eliminations.

The post-season selection announcement will be webstreamed live on NCAA.com Monday, November 8 at 2 p.m. Eastern time.

Central
Region Record Overall Record
1. Washington U. 10-1-2 11-1-3
2. Dominican 15-1-1 15-1-1
3. Calvin 10-2-3 11-2-3
4. North Park 9-3-1 9-4-1
5. Wheaton (Ill.) 6-5-3 8-6-3
6. Illinois Wesleyan 6-3-2 6-6-2
7. Hope 8-5-2 9-5-2

East
Region Record Overall Record
1. Stevens 9-1-3 10-1-3
2. New York University 9-2-3 9-2-3
3. Rochester 6-1-5 8-1-5
4. St. Lawrence 10-2-2 13-2-2
5. Hamilton 9-2-2 9-2-2
6. Plattsburgh State 11-4-1 12-4-1
7. Oneonta State 11-3-3 11-3-3
8. Brockport State 11-2-2 11-2-2
9. RPI 8-3-3 8-4-3

Great Lakes
Region Record Overall Record
1. Ohio Wesleyan 9-0-2 12-1-2
2. Carnegie Mellon 8-2-1 10-2-1
3. Kenyon 12-1-0 13-1-1
4. Ohio Northern 14-3-1 14-3-1
5. Case Western Reserve 10-4-3 10-4-3
6. DePauw 13-1-2 13-1-2
7. Heidelberg 11-3-2 11-3-2
8. Capital 11-4-0 12-4-0

Mid-Atlantic
Region Record Overall Record
1. Messiah 11-1-0 12-1-0
2. Drew 11-1-3 12-1-3
3. Swarthmore 12-1-2 12-1-2
4. Muhlenberg 9-0-6 9-0-6
5. Johns Hopkins 9-3-3 10-3-3
6. Merchant Marine 9-2-4 9-2-4
7. Franklin & Marshall 7-3-3 7-3-3
8. Dickinson 7-3-2 9-3-3

New England
Region Record Overall Record
1. Williams 10-1-2 10-1-2
2. Middlebury 11-2-0 11-2-0
3. Bowdoin 10-1-2 10-1-2
4. Amherst 9-1-3 9-1-3
5. Eastern Connecticut 11-3-2 11-3-2
6. Babson 11-3-2 11-3-2
7. MIT 10-2-1 10-2-1
8. Bridgewater State 10-4-0 10-4-0
9. Brandeis 8-4-1 8-4-1
10. Westfield State 12-3-0 12-3-0
11. Wheaton (Mass.) 9-5-2 10-5-2
12. Keene State 11-4-2 11-4-2

North
Region Record Overall Record
1. UW-Oshkosh 14-0-2 16-0-2
2. UW-Whitewater 11-1-1 12-1-2
3. Augsburg 10-4-1 11-4-1
4. Macalester 12-3-1 12-3-1
5. Concordia-Moorhead 11-3-1 12-3-1
6. St. Scholastica 14-3-1 14-3-1
7. Loras 11-6-0 12-6-0

South Atlantic
Region Record Overall Record
1. Emory 10-1-2 12-1-2
2. York (Pa.) 14-4-0 14-4-0
3. William Paterson 12-3-2 12-3-2
4. North Carolina Wesleyan 10-2-2 11-3-2
5. Salisbury 11-2-3 12-2-3
6. Christopher Newport 11-1-1 15-1-1
7. Lynchburg 11-3-1 12-3-1
8. Richard Stockton 12-4-2 12-4-2

West
Region Record Overall Record
1. Trinity (Texas) 13-1-0 14-2-0
2. Texas-Tyler 9-2-1 9-2-1
3. Mary Hardin-Baylor 11-3-0 11-3-0
4. UC Santa Cruz 6-2-2 9-3-3
5. Pacific 8-2-3 11-2-3
6. Hardin-Simmons 8-5-0 9-5-0

No tags