The men's soccer team had a lot to shout about yesterday while watching the NCAA tournament selection show. Brown received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament and will be hosting Adelphi University in a first-round game Saturday.
"We're excited," said co-captain Ben Brackett '07. "It's just a great chance to do well."
Although Friday's 1-0 loss to Yale hurt Brown's chances of receiving an at-large bid into the tournament, the Bears had faith that their name would appear in the draw.
"You never know until it comes up on the screen," said Head Coach Mike Noonan. "But I felt that our chances were pretty strong. We play a very competitive schedule."
Brown stumbled a bit toward the end of the season, finishing the year with two straight goal-less games, a tie with the University of Pennsylvania and the loss to Yale. Brown, however, did play well against the vast majority of the quality opponents on its schedule, including victories over No. 24 Colgate University, then-No. 19 Boston University, 2005 tournament participant Hartwick College and Boston College.
The schedule this year did not include any games against Adelphi. "I don't know much about them," said co-captain Ian Premo '07.
"Is (Adelphi) in New York somewhere?" Brackett asked Noonan, who nodded yes and also confirmed that the Panthers had won their conference tournament.
The Panthers' victory in the Atlantic Soccer Conference earned them an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament. Located on Long Island, Adelphi has not participated in the postseason since 1992, when it lost to Pennsylvania State University, 2-1, in the first round. The one team that both the Panthers and the Bears played this season was Hartwick; both squads defeated the Hawks.
Despite the relative lack of knowledge about their opponent, the Bears are excited to be hosting Saturday's match. "I expect us to have a great performance in front of a huge home crowd," Premo said.
The match begins at 1 p.m.
"It's fantastic," Noonan said. "We're happy with playing at home. We're looking to get great fan support."
If Brown wins Saturday's match, it will face top-seeded Duke University in the second round.
