Indiana men’s soccer is ready to kick off its 22nd appearance in the College Cup.
The No. 13-seeded Hoosiers will face Pittsburgh on Friday (Dec. 9) at the WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., in an NCAA College Cup Semifinal matchup set to kick off at around 8:30 p.m. Eastern. The match will air live on ESPNU with streaming available on Watch ESPN.
The below preview is via release from IU Athletics:
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SETTING THE SCENE
• Indiana is playing in the NCAA Tournament Semifinal round for the 22nd time in program history, an NCAA record. It’s also IU’s fourth NCAA College Cup appearance in the last six seasons.
• IU will face Pittsburgh in a rematch of the 2020 semifinal that the Hoosiers won, 1-0, via Herbert Endeley’s 79th-minute goal. Endeley has scored game-winning goals in each of IU’s two meetings with the Panthers, a series that only goes back to 2019.
• Indiana has not conceded a goal through three NCAA Tournament matches, a total of 270 minutes.
• The winner of Friday’s match will face the winner of No. 3-seeded Syracuse and Creighton on Monday (Dec. 12) in the NCAA College Cup final.
• The Panthers advanced to the College Cup with a 1-0, double overtime victory over Portland. Pitt previously defeated Cleveland State, No. 16-seed Akron and No. 1 Kentucky in the tournament.
• With a win, Indiana would become the first NCAA Division-I men’s soccer program to reach 100 NCAA Tournament victories.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS
• Pittsburgh enters Friday’s match with a 12-4-5 record and a 3-2-3 mark in ACC play. The Panthers have defeated Cleveland State, No. 16 Akron, No. 1 Kentucky and Portland to reach the College Cup.
• The Panthers are led by Jay Vidovich, who has compiled a 69-54-13 throughout his eight seasons at the helm.
• Including their tournament wins over No. 16 Akron and No. 1 Kentucky, Pittsburgh has beaten six ranked teams this season. The other ranked wins came over No. 2 Georgetown, No. 6 West Virginia, No. 25 Duquesne and No. 11 North Carolina State.
• Pittsburgh had five players recognized for All-ACC honors. Senior midfielder Valentin Noel and junior midfielder Filip Mirkovic both were named to the All-ACC First Team. Graduate student Jackson Walti and junior Bertin Jacquesson were named to the All-ACC Second Team while Jackson Gilman earned a spot on the ACC’s All-Freshman Team.
• Two of those Panthers, Noel and Jacquesson, each have scored more than 20 points. Noel has recorded 25 points from his team-high 11 goals with three assists, as well. Jacquesson has scored eight times and has assisted on five chances to bring his season-point total to 21.
SERIES HISTORY
• Friday’s match will mark the third meeting between Indiana and Pittsburgh, all coming within the last four seasons. IU won each of the first two matchups.
• The two teams last met in the same scenario they’re in now – the NCAA Tournament Semifinal. Herbert Endeley’s 79th minute goal sent IU through to the 2020 NCAA College Cup final while sending the Panthers home.
• Endeley scored the winner in the first-ever meeting as well. The teams went to overtime tied, 2-2, before Endeley’s strike in the 103rd minute gave the Hoosiers the win in IU’s 2019 season opener.
• Endeley is one of three Hoosiers on the current to play in each of the previous two matches, joined by Daniel Munie and Maouloune Goumballe. Joey Maher, Nyk Sessock, Brett Bebej, Ryan Wittenbrink, Ben Yeagley, and Nate Ward also played in the 2020 semifinal.
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