2017 NCAA Division I men's soccer championship game explained

NCAA Division I men's soccer championship game
Event:2017 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship
Team1:Indiana
Team1association:Big Ten
Team1score:0
Team2:Stanford
Team2association:Pac-12
Team2score:1
Details:After extra time
Date:December 10, 2017
Stadium:Talen Energy Stadium
City:Chester, Pennsylvania
Referee:Chico Grajeda
Weather:Partly cloudy and 37F
Attendance:5,764
Previous:2016
Next:2018

The 2017 NCAA Division I men's soccer championship game was the final game of the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship, determining the national champion for the 2017 NCAA Division I men's soccer season. The match was played on December 10, 2017 at Talen Energy Stadium in Chester, Pennsylvania, a soccer-specific stadium that is home to the Major League Soccer club Philadelphia Union. The match was contested between Stanford of the Pac-12 Conference and Indiana of the Big Ten Conference.

After 90 scoreless minutes, the match was decided in the second period extra time on a golden goal from Stanford's Sam Werner.[1] [2] [3] The win gave Stanford their third consecutive NCAA Division I Men's Soccer title, making them the second ever program to threepeat in the tournament, and the first program to do so since Bruce Arena's Virginia teams did so in 1994.[4] [5] Additionally, the victory gave Stanford an unprecedented 115th NCAA overall team title, moving ahead of UCLA.[6] [7] With the women's team also winning the Women's College Cup the week before,[8] the title makes Stanford the first Division I school to win national titles in both men's and women's soccer in the same season.[9] [10]

The match was televised on live on ESPN2.[11]

Road to the final

The NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament, sometimes known as the College Cup, is an American intercollegiate soccer tournament conducted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), and determines the Division I men's national champion. The tournament has been formally held since 1959, when it was an eight-team tournament. Since then, the tournament has expanded to 48 teams, in which every Division I conference tournament champion is allocated a berth. It was Indiana's first appearance since 2012, which they won. Stanford entered the final as the two-defending champion, winning their first ever national title in their third NCAA final appearance. It was the Cardinal's fifth NCAA championship appearance, finishing as runners-up in 1998 and 2002.

Indiana

The Hoosiers entered the 2017 season with an NCAA-record 42 consecutive seasons qualifying for the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship, qualifying for every NCAA Tournament since 1976. The Hoosiers were coming off an unexpectedly early exit from the NCAA Tournament, where they earned an at-large berth and reached the Round of 16, before losing to Virginia Tech on penalty kicks.[12] During the 2016 Big Ten Conference men's soccer season, the Hoosiers were tied for second in the regular season with Wisconsin.[13] In the 2016 Big Ten Conference Men's Soccer Tournament, the Hoosiers reached the semifinals before losing, again on penalties, to Wisconsin.[14]

The Hoosiers finished the regular season with an undefeated record, being the only program in the nation to achieve such an accomplishment. During the regular season, the Hoosiers finished 13-0-4 and 5-0-3 in conference play. They finished second in the Big Ten behind Michigan, and were seeded second in the 2017 Big Ten Conference Men's Soccer Tournament. There, the Hoosiers defeated Penn State and Ohio without giving up any goals. In the championship game, the Hoosiers faced Wisconsin, the same program that had eliminated them from the previous year's Big Ten Tournament. After a scoreless draw, the Badgers got the better of the Hoosiers in a penalty shoot-out, giving the Badgers the Big Ten title. Despite failing to win the Big Ten title, Indiana earned an at-large berth into the NCAA Tournament, where they were given the number two-overall seed. This afforded the Hoosiers a first-round bye, where they hosted the winner of the Old Dominion (2017 Conference USA Men's Soccer Tournament champions) vs. NC State (ACC 9th-place finishers) match in the second round. Old Dominion won the match 2-0, meaning the Hoosiers hosted the Monarchs in Bloomington on November 19, in the second round. Goals from Lillard, Toye and Panchot were enough for Indiana, as they cruised to a 3-0 win over Old Dominion.

In the third round, or "sweet sixteen" of the tournament, Indiana hosted the 20th-ranked, New Hampshire (2017 America East Men's Soccer Tournament semifinalists). Thomas opened the scoring for the Hoosiers in the 10th minute, while Moore scored the game-winning goal in the 65th minute, giving Indiana a 2-0 lead over New Hampshire. The Wildcats' Jacob Gould would notch one back in the 76th minute, creating a nervy final quarter hour for the Hoosiers. Despite this, Indiana would hold on to win the match, and advance to their 25th NCAA quarterfinal ("elite eight") and their first since their national championship run in 2012. In the quarterfinals, Indiana was pitted against their conference foes, the seventh-seed Michigan State. The match, played at Bill Armstrong Stadium in Bloomington was sold out, with a capacity crowd of 5,450. In the match, the Spartans would score a stunning 2nd-minute goal to put the Hoosiers in an early hole. Michigan State left winger Ken Krolicki served a cross to Ryan Sierakowski, who headed it in the bottom left corner. It was Ryan Sierakowski's ninth goal of the season. The Spartans would hold on to the lead through the first half and through a third of the second half of play. In the 60th minute, Indiana's Swartz headed an inswinging corner kick to tie the match, 1-1. The score would remain gridlocked through the remainder of regulation and the two overtime periods. In penalty kicks, Indiana prevailed over Michigan State 3-2, giving the Hoosiers their 19th College Cup appearance.

In the national semifinals, Indiana took on a familiar college soccer powerhouse, North Carolina. The cagey match featured a lone goal from Gutman, who scored off a loose ball in the penalty box off a deflected corner kick. This lone 50th-minute goal was enough to send Indiana to its 15th NCAA Division I men's soccer championship game.

Stanford

The Cardinal began the season as the two-time defending NCAA Champions, and the three-time defending Pac-12 Champions. The program had nine of its starters from 2016 return for 2017.[15] One of the program's major losses entering 2017 was senior defender, Brian Nana-Sinkham, who graduated and signed a pro contract with United Soccer League outfit Seattle Sounders FC 2, the reserve team of Major League Soccer's Seattle Sounders FC. Notable returnees included Drew Skundrich, Corey Baird and Foster Langsdorf, who had been central pieces of Stanford's team since their 2015 championship. During the regular season into the NCAA Tournament, the three led the team in points and in goals. Langsdorf specifically led the team with 34 points on the season, from 14 goals and 6 assists. Baird led the team with 7 assists.[16]

During the 2016-17 offseason, it was speculated that midfielder Baird would forgo his senior season and sign a homegrown contract with MLS's Real Salt Lake for playing in their academy before college.[17] Baird committed during the spring that he would return for a senior season at Stanford.[15]

During preseason, it was predicted that the Cardinal would again win the Pac-12 title.[18] The Cardinal were ranked first in numerous preseason national rankings including United Soccer Coaches,[19] TopDrawerSoccer.com,[20] CollegeSoccerNews.com,[21] Hero Sports[22] and Soccer America.[23]

Pre-match

Venue selection

The National Collegiate Athletic Association determined the host of the final in 2015. Since the foundation of the NCAA Tournament, the venue for the College Cup semifinals and national championship have been played at a predetermined neutral site. It was the first time since 2013 that the state of Pennsylvania hosted the NCAA Men's College Cup and the third time ever that the state hosted the College Cup.

Tickets went on pre-sale for Philadelphia Union season ticket holders on August 24, 2017.[24]

Analysis

Ahead of the match, CollegeSoccerNews.com said the match should "be dandy" given the explosive offense Stanford brings and Indiana's strong defense.[25] The staff article published by CSN did not favoritism towards either Stanford or Indiana, but instead took pieces of what could give the Cardinal or Hoosiers a national championship. The prediction included that Stanford's specialty in set pieces and athleticism might not favor the Hoosiers, while the Cardinal also have had experience of playing in the two previous title games.[25] Indiana was seen as a potential victor due to never losing a single match in regulation at all during the season.[26] Predictions, however, that slightly favored Stanford, said that Indiana's Mason Toye,[25] the true freshman with 10 goals on the season,[27] would need to have an impact on the match in order for the Hoosiers to see it through. Some critics and analysts favored Indiana because of their experienced back line that featured center backs Grant Lillard and Andrew Gutman.[25] [26]

Predictions that favored Stanford stated that Stanford striker Foster Langsdorf, who had been with the team for the 2015 and 2016 finals, would need to have a big match in order to secure a victory for Stanford.[25] [26]

Match

Details

width=25!width=25
GK 1 Trey Muse
RB 19 Rece Buckmaster
CB 15 Andrew Gutman
CB 5 Grant Lillard
LB 20 Timmy Mehl
RW 8 Jared Gilbey
DM 14 Griffin Dorsey
CM 13 Francesco Moore
CM 12 Austin Panchot
LW 7 Trevor Swartz
ST 8 Mason Toye
Substitutes:
FW 9 Rashad Hyacenth
MF 10 Justin Rennicks
Manager:
Todd Yeagley
<-- -->
width=25!width=25
GK 1 Nico Corti
RB 3 Tanner Beason
CB 4 Tomas Hilliard-Arce
CB 6 Adam Mosharrafa
LB 22 Logan Panchot
CM 8 Jared Gilbey
CM 7 Bryce Marion
CM 23 Sam Werner
AM 12
ST 2 Foster Langsdorf
ST 10 Corey Baird
Substitutes:
MF 11 Amir Bashti
DF 5 Carson Vom Steeg
MF 29 Derek Waldeck
MF 17 Charlie Wehan
GK 31 Eduardo Fabre
Manager:
Jeremy Gunn
College Cup MVP
Andrew Epstein (Stanford)

Assistant referees


Danny Thornberry (United States)
Tom Felice (United States)
Fourth official


Chris Penso (United States)

Match rules:
  • 90 minutes.
  • 20 minutes of extra time if necessary.
  • Penalty shoot-out if scores still level.
  • Unlimited substitutes, may not return if subbed out in the first half; may return unlimited times in the second half.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Fonseca. Brian. NCAA men's soccer final: Stanford beats Indiana in overtime. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia Media Network. December 10, 2017. Philadelphia. December 10, 2017.
  2. Web site: Stanford men make NCAA soccer history with three-peat. Palo Alto Weekly. Embarcadero Media. December 10, 2017. Palo Alto, California. Web page. December 10, 2017.
  3. Web site: Sharp. Corey. Stanford men win 3rd straight NCAA soccer title. San Francisco Gate. Hearst Corporation. December 10, 2017. San Francisco. December 10, 2017.
  4. Web site: Price. Jeremy. Hoosiers have to settle for almost perfect in 1-0 loss to Stanford. The Herald-Times. Schurz Communications. December 10, 2017. December 10, 2017.
  5. Web site: Stanford men beat Indiana in double OT for third straight soccer title. ESPN. ESPN Inc.. December 10, 2017. Bristol, Connecticut. December 10, 2017.
  6. Web site: Mewhirter. Travis. Stanford officially ‘Home of Champions’ after soccer team wins national title. Stanford Die Hard. December 10, 2017. December 10, 2017.
  7. Web site: No. 115: Stanford sits atop the all-time team championship leaderboard. Stanford Cardinal. gostanford.com. December 10, 2017. December 10, 2017.
  8. Web site: Rose. Ryan. Stanford Cardinal beat undefeated Indiana, win third straight championship. The Philly Soccer Page. phillysoccerpage.com. December 10, 2017.
  9. Web site: Stanford wins third straight national title with 1-0 win in double overtime against Indiana. National Collegiate Athletic Association. ncaa.com. December 10, 2017. December 10, 2017. Stanford made history this year as both the Cardinal's men's and women's soccer teams won the national championship, something no school has ever accomplished in NCAA DI history..
  10. Web site: Almond. Elliot. College Cup update: Stanford men’s soccer team makes history. The Mercury News. Digital First Media. December 10, 2017. December 10, 2017.
  11. Web site: 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship Printable Bracket. i.turner.ncaa.com. National Collegiate Athletics Association. December 9, 2017. November 14, 2017.
  12. Web site: NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament Central. November 15, 2016. November 26, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201043309/http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/111516aaa.html. December 1, 2017. dead.
  13. Web site: 2016 Big Ten Men's Soccer Statistics. Big Ten. November 26, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171114040205/http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-soccer/archive/msoc-confsked16.html. November 14, 2017. dead.
  14. Web site: 2016 Big Ten Men's Soccer Tournament. November 26, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20161221091411/http://www.bigten.org/sports/m-soccer/spec-rel/big10-m-soccer-tournament-16.html. December 21, 2016. dead.
  15. Web site: Eymer. Rick. Stanford men in great shape entering home opener. Palo Alto Weekly. Embarcadero Media. December 9, 2017. September 1, 2017. subscription .
  16. Web site: 2017 Stanford Men's Soccer: Combined Player Statistics. gostanford.com. December 9, 2017. August 25, 2017.
  17. Web site: Montgomery. Matt. Five college players that could make the jump to Real Salt Lake, Real Monarchs. RSL Soapbox. SB Nation. December 9, 2017. February 28, 2017.
  18. Web site: Stanford named Men’s Soccer preseason Pac-12 favorite. https://web.archive.org/web/20170905050353/http://pac-12.com/article/2017/08/14/stanford-named-mens-soccer-preseason-pac-12-favorite. dead. September 5, 2017. Pac-12 Conference. September 4, 2017. August 15, 2017.
  19. Web site: United Soccer Coaches NCAA Division I Men National Preseason Ranking. United Soccer Coaches. August 4, 2017. August 3, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20181215121210/http://unitedsoccercoaches.org/web/Rankings/College_Rankings/NCAA_DI_MEN/web/Rankings/NCAA/DI_MEN.aspx. December 15, 2018. dead.
  20. Web site: Men's DI Top 25 Preseason. TopDrawerSoccer.com . August 21, 2017 . August 21, 2017 .
  21. Web site: College Soccer News 2017 Preseason National Poll . CollegeSoccerNews.com . August 16, 2017 . August 16, 2017 . August 17, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170817080103/http://www.collegesoccernews.com/index.php/polls/csn-preseason-top-30-poll/1065-college-soccer-news-2017-preseason-national-poll . dead .
  22. Web site: D1 Mens Soccer Rankings. HERO Sports News. August 25, 2017. August 28, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180828103700/https://herosports.com/rankings/college-mens-soccer. dead.
  23. Web site: Soccer America Men's Preseason College Top 25 . socceramerica.com . August 23, 2017 . August 24, 2017 .
  24. Web site: Born. Jacob. College Cup pre-sale for Union season ticket members on sale now. Philadelphia Union. philadelphiaunion.com. December 8, 2017. August 24, 2017.
  25. Web site: Staff. Stanford and Indiana Advance To National Championship Contest. collegesoccernews.com. December 9, 2017. December 9, 2017.
  26. Web site: Kennedy. Paul. Men's College Cup: Stanford and Indiana Move into Final. Soccer America. December 9, 2017. December 9, 2017.
  27. Web site: Ramirez. Michael. More to men's soccer's Mason Toye than meets the eye. Indiana Daily Student. idsnews.com. December 9, 2017. November 10, 2017.