SPARTANBURG, S.C. – UNCG has secured the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Southern Conference Men’s Soccer Championship after posting a 5-1-0 league mark this season. The Spartans, who are the defending 2020-21 SoCon tournament champions, claimed at least a share of the regular-season championship for the first time since 2019, when they split with Furman.
 
The tournament begins Monday, Nov. 1, with No. 6 seed Wofford (4-10-1, 1-4-1 SoCon) hosting No. 7 seed VMI (1-15-1, 0-6) in Spartanburg. The Terriers bested the Keydets 8-1 on Sept. 18.
 
The quarterfinal round opens on Nov. 5 with the semifinal round set for Nov. 7, both hosted by top-seed UNCG and No. 2 seed Mercer. The championship will be played at the highest remaining seed on Nov. 13 or 14.
 
UNCG (13-3-1) grabbed a 2-0 victory over ETSU on Saturday to conclude the regular season, while Mercer concluded its regular season the same day with a 3-1 win over Wofford. The Bears went 8-7-1 overall and 4-1-1 in league play, losing its last bout to UNCG 3-0 on Saturday, Oct. 2.
 
Furman went 6-8-1 overall and 4-2-0 in league play to earn the No. 3 seed in a tiebreaker over Belmont. The Paladins will face the winner of No. 6 Wofford and No. 7 VMI in the quarterfinals hosted by Mercer in Macon, Georgia.
 
Belmont (11-4-1, 4-2-0) is the No. 4 seed and will take on No. 5 ETSU (4-7-3, 1-3-2) on Friday, Nov. 5, in Greensboro, North Carolina. In their last matchup on Sept. 18, the Bruins clinched a 1-0 victory over the Buccaneers. ETSU finished its regular season with a 2-0 loss to No. 1 seed UNCG, while Belmont concluded its regular season with a 2-0 nonconference win over Eastern Illinois Tuesday, Oct. 26.

The tournament winner earns the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship.
 
2021 Men's Soccer Championship
Monday, Nov. 1
First Round (at higher seed)
Match 1: No. 7 VMI at No. 6 Wofford, 7 p.m.

Friday, Nov. 5
Quarterfinals (at No. 1 & No. 2 seeds)
Match 2: No. 4 Belmont vs. No. 5 ETSU, 6 p.m. (Greensboro, N.C.)
Match 3: Winner Match 1 vs. No. 3 Furman, 6 p.m. (Macon, Ga.)

Sunday, Nov. 7
Semifinals (at No. 1 & No. 2 seeds)
Match 4: Winner Match 2 vs. No. 1 UNCG, 6 p.m.
Match 5: Winner Match 3 vs. No. 2 Mercer, 3 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 13, or Sunday, Nov. 14
Final (Highest remaining seed, location TBD)
Match 6: Winner Match 4 vs. Winner Match 5, TBA

*all times Eastern unless otherwise noted