SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Mercer’s men’s soccer team was handed their first conference loss on Saturday but have locked up the Southern Conference regular-season title and the No. 1 seed in the upcoming SoCon Men’s Soccer Championship in Johnson City, Tennessee.
The Bears finished the regular season with a 12-3-2 overall record and are 5-1 in the conference. Mercer, paced on offense by three-time SoCon player of the week Trevor Martineau’s 25 points (nine goals and seven assists) and on defense by keeper JR DeRose’s 1.03 goals against average, will face either No. 4 seed Wofford or No. 5 seed UNCG in the SoCon semifinals on Nov. 9. Mercer went 1-0 against Wofford and UNCG this year.
UNCG and Wofford will meet in Spartanburg, South Carolina, on Nov. 3 at 6 p.m. The Terriers went 5-10-1 in the regular season and 3-3-0 in SoCon play, wrapping up their conference slate season with a 3-1 win over VMI on Tuesday to secure hosting duties.
UNCG finished its regular season at 6-8-2 overall and 2-2-2 in league play. The Terriers entered Saturday’s match at ETSU with a chance to finish as high as the 3 seed but dropped their second contest in a row to finish the regular season after moving to .500 in SoCon play late in the year.
On the other side of the bracket, ETSU claimed the No. 2 seed after handing Mercer their first conference loss on Saturday. The Bucs went 9-6-1 overall (4-1-1 in conference play) and boast three players who have scored four or more goals this season, including October’s men’s soccer player of the month, Danny Barlow, with nine goals on the season. The Bucs will host winner of No. 3 Furman against the winner of No. 7 VMI and No. 6 Belmont in the tournament semifinals on Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. ETSU was 0-1 against Furman, 1-0 against VMI and 1-0 against Belmont this season.
VMI finished their season 1-15-1 overall and 0-6 in conference play. The Keydets offense was led by freshman Justin Riescher’s team leading four goals.
Belmont finished their season with a 3-0 win against VMI to bring their regular season record to 3-11-2 and there conference record to 1-4-1. They will battle it out with VMI on Wednesday to see who will head to Greenville, South Carolina, to take on the Paladins for a chance a spot in the conference semifinals in Johnson City.
The championship match will take place Sunday, Nov. 11, at 1 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
The tournament winner earns the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship.
2018 SoCon Men’s Soccer Championship
First Round, Wednesday, Oct. 31
Campus sites (at higher seeds)
Match 1: No. 7 VMI at No. 6 Belmont, 4 p.m. (CT)
Quarterfinals, Saturday, Nov. 3
Campus sites (at higher seeds)
Match 2: No. 5 UNCG at No. 4 Wofford, 6 p.m.
Match 3: Winner of match #1 at No. 3 Furman, 7 p.m.
Championship Semifinals, Friday, Nov. 9
Johnson City, Tenn.
Match 4: Winner of match #2 vs. No. 1 Mercer, 3:30 p.m.
Match 5: Winner of match #3 vs. No. 2 ETSU, 6 p.m.
Finals, Saturday No. 4
Johnson City, Tenn.
Match 6: Winner of match #4 vs. Winner of match #5, 1 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP BRACKET
For more information about this seasons championship in Johnson City, click here.
-www.SoConSports.com-