Nov. 17, 2009

Center Valley, Pa.--Patriot League champion Bucknell will open the 2009 NCAA Tournament on the road against Princeton. The winner will advance to take on Virginia.

Patriot League Men's Soccer Release 11.17.09

Bucknell Opens NCAA Tournament at Princeton

Bucknell at Princeton
Thursday, Nov. 17, 7:00 p.m.
Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium
Princeton, N.J. 

The Bucknell men's soccer team will be on the road to start the NCAA Tournament, traveling to Princeton for an opening-round matchup on Thursday at 7 p.m., at Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium. Now 16-5 on the season, the Bison punched their ticket to the national tournament for the second time in the last four years by defeating American 1-0 in the Patriot League championship match on Sunday. Princeton is 9-5-3 overall and finished third in the Ivy League behind Harvard and Brown.

Bucknell is making its fifth trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Bison are 2-4 all-time in NCAA play, having defeated Penn State 1-0 in 1974 and George Mason in 2006. Bucknell and Princeton have met only twice previously on the soccer pitch, that coming in a home-and-home series in 2005 and 2006. The Bison won the first meeting on Princeton's home field, 1-0, but the Tigers returned the favor the following season, winning 1-0 in Lewisburg. Overall, Patriot League teams are 6-14-3 in the NCAA Tournament.

The Bucknell-Princeton winner will meet national No. 2 seed Virginia in the second round on Sunday. The last time Bucknell played in the NCAA Tournament in 2006, it defeated George Mason 1-0 in overtime in the first round, then lost to Virginia 4-0 in round two.

Both teams feature prolific scorers. Bucknell's Conor O'Brien, the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year, has a League-high 11 goals, the last coming in overtime to beat Lafayette in the Patriot League Tournament semifinals. O'Brien also has a league-best eight assists on the season. For Princeton, Antoine Hoppenot leads the way with 10 goals, and he is coming off a hat trick in a 4-0 win over Yale on Friday. Princeton will be making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance and its first since 2001. The Tigers played three Patriot League teams during the regular season, winning them all by shutout. Princeton defeated Lehigh (1-0), American (3-0) and Colgate (3-0).

Bucknell has broken the program record and tied the Patriot League mark for wins in a season. The 16 victories are third-most in the nation, trailing only No. 1 overall seed Akron (20-0-0) and Monmouth (18-1-1). Of those 16 wins, 11 have come by shutout, including nine 1-0 results.

Patriot League Notebook

Patriot League In The NCAA Tournament 
Patriot League teams are 7-15-1 in NCAA Tournament games. The last time a Patriot League team advanced past the first round was in 2006. Bucknell, which is the most recent team to record a victory in a Patriot League Tournament game, topped George Mason in the opening round before falling to Virginia. Lehigh, which received a first-round bye in 2006, advanced past Rhode Island to the third round on penalty kicks. Lehigh's 2006 tournament run made it the only Patriot League team to reach the third round. That was also one of two seasons in which multiple Patriot League teams reached the tournament. Three teams reached the field in 2002.

2009 Patriot League Tournament 
Defense was the name of the game as Bucknell claimed its second Patriot League Championship on its home field in Lewisburg. The top-seeded Bison recorded a 1-0 overtime victory over Lafayette in the opening round. Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year Conor O'Brien scored the game-winning goal to move the Bison into the championship round, where they defeated American. The Eagles reached the title game after outdueling Lehigh in penalty kicks. In the championship tilt, Bucknell outlasted the Eagles by a 1-0 score. Bucknell exacted revenge for a 3-1 loss to the Eagles earlier in the season.

2008 NCAA Tournament Recap 
The Colgate Raiders were downed by Boston College, 2-0, in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament in Chestnut Hill, Mass. The first period featured spirited, back and forth action by both teams. In the 10th minute, Colgate sophomore Jeff Leach streaked down the left side of the field and crossed a ball to junior Steven Miller, whose shot went just wide of the right post. But the Eagles quickly got back on offense, and at 18:32, Boston College midfielder Alejandro Bedoya crossed to teammate Shawn Chin inside the Colgate box, where Chin touched the ball in to the far corner of the net, giving the Eagles a quick 1-0 lead. At 40:57, the Eagles found the back of the net again, as Edvin Worley's header off of a corner kick by Chin arched in for a goal, putting Boston College up, 2-0, as the Eagles outshot the Raiders, 7-2. Cappuccio sustained a first-period injury and was replaced by Chris Miller in the Colgate goal for the second half. 

Shooting For Shutouts 
Half of the Patriot League's eight teams have allowed fewer than 20 goals this season. Patriot League squads have combined to produce 43 shutouts, including a League-leading 11 apiece by Bucknell and Lafayette.  

Variety Is The Spice Of Life 
Bucknell's match against Princeton will be the 24th NCAA Tournament game for Patriot League teams. It will be the first NCAA Tournament meeting between Princeton and a Patriot League team. Patriot League squads have only met one school in multiple NCAA Tournament games. Virginia, which has beaten Lehigh (2000), American (2004) and Bucknell (2006), is the only repeat foe for Patriot League teams in the NCAA Tournament.

Talented Trio 
A trio of freshmen has contributed to 36 of Bucknell's 103 points this season. Leading the way is Brendan Burgdorf, who has tallied 18 points himself. Burgdorf was named to the Patriot League All-Tournament Team after scoring the game-winning goal in the champioinship against American. He has eight goals and two assists. CK Kumah has added four goals and three assists, while Josh Plump has two goals and three assists. All three were named Patriot League Rookie of the Year once this season.

Keep Track Of The Patriot League Through Social Media 
In addition to visiting www.patriotleague.org, League fans and followers have plenty of new ways to stay updated and involved during the 2009 NCAA Tournament. The Patriot League has accounts on Facebook and Twitter, and has now started a blog to give more information on the action on the field. All three accounts are accessible through the multimedia link at the right-hand sidebar on the front page of www.patriotleague.org.