NCAA Tournament 2025

[Camel_Supporter]

May have posted this earlier. But seems like yesterday when tufts beat messiah on the round to their first natty championship ... the "giant killer" goal if I recall correctly

[SKUD]

https://www.ncaa.com/champs-pass

Scroll down for completed games.

[Another Mom]

I am rooting for Lynchburg.  They are a strong team, and they don't get a lot of attention on the forum. (I know probably because of the Flo Sports paywall) (which, by the way, I took great pleasure in canceling yesterday)

[Hillcountryview]

UPDATE:  Trinity 1 - Texas Lutheran 0 (25th minute)

Trinity passes beautifully in the box and Trinity's Julian Lopez takes advantage of the TLU keeper's aggressive play to come out for through balls and draws the PK.  Luke Mayfield scores it.  Incidentally, I admire Lopez for actually playing for the contact since TLU's keeper is listed at 6'2" and 260 lbs.

HALF:  Trinity 1 - Texas Lutheran 0

Game is getting a little testy, including among the fans.  Trinity leading in shots 10-5 and TLU hasn't registered a shot on goal, but Trinity has tightened up defensively since the PK.

UPDATE:  Trinity 2 - Texas Lutheran 0

Samuel Theiss dances around the endline and kicks it over the sliding goalkeeper, who is playing for the square ball, with the outside of his foot and into the net.  A bit against the run of play as TLU almost scored a few minutes earlier

FINAL:  Trinity 2 - Texas Lutheran 0

Trinity just is too good at passing in and around TLU in tight spaces and killed off the game after the second goal.  The Tigers advance to the third round for the second year in a row.

TLU is going to be tough in the coming years.  Their GK Avila, who played pretty well, is a freshman, and their big striker Robert Palmer is a sophomore.

Living in the area it's great to see both teams in the tournament. I recognize most of the players from high school and club soccer and can attest- playing club in South Texas is not remotely the same as it is in Austin or Dallas. Plenty of talent, but it's a tough environment. Quality club coaches are hard to come by, and there's little if any guidance on the college pathway- definitely not D3. 

Hopefully, there's a trickle down effect. Each round a S.TX college advances, local players are watching guys they know. They're seeing colleges they've probably never heard of and the legitimacy of the D3 soccer. It's not just D1 or bust!

[Hillcountryview]

I am rooting for Lynchburg.  They are a strong team, and they don't get a lot of attention on the forum. (I know probably because of the Flo Sports paywall) (which, by the way, I took great pleasure in canceling yesterday)

Agreed. I'm rooting for Lynchburg too.

[Mr_November]

I am rooting for Lynchburg.  They are a strong team, and they don't get a lot of attention on the forum. (I know probably because of the Flo Sports paywall) (which, by the way, I took great pleasure in canceling yesterday)

Agreed. I'm rooting for Lynchburg too.

Lynchburg's center backs are quality. Built like tanks but also highly intelligent and composed on the ball. Strike me as championship level center backs. Will be very interesting to see how Dickinson's elite attackers do against the Hornets.

[Kuiper]

I am rooting for Lynchburg.  They are a strong team, and they don't get a lot of attention on the forum. (I know probably because of the Flo Sports paywall) (which, by the way, I took great pleasure in canceling yesterday)

Agreed. I'm rooting for Lynchburg too.

Lynchburg's center backs are quality. Built like tanks but also highly intelligent and composed on the ball. Strike me as championship level center backs. Will be very interesting to see how Dickinson's elite attackers do against the Hornets.

Dickinson has 7 ties and they are mostly 1-1 or 0-0 ties.  Their forwards were by no means unstoppable during the regular season (although usually by teams that sacrificed offense to secure their defensive flanks).  Since conference tournament has started, however, they have taken it to another level.  3-0, 4-0, 5-0, and 2-0.

[Newenglander]

https://www.ncaa.com/champs-pass

Scroll down for completed games.

Thanks but only see completed games from last year (unless I'm still missing something)....

[Hopkins92]

I am rooting for Lynchburg.  They are a strong team, and they don't get a lot of attention on the forum. (I know probably because of the Flo Sports paywall) (which, by the way, I took great pleasure in canceling yesterday)

Agreed. I'm rooting for Lynchburg too.

Dickinson is a tough out and they are playing probably as well as they've played all year. They ran my boys off the field to win the CC and took both of its pod games in relative ease.

Should be a great game. Always have to respect an ODAC opponent this time of year.

[Bucket]

With my Panthers (employer and primary team) and Generals (alma mater) out, I'm all in on Dickinson (where I send a tuition check twice a year).

Up the Red Devils!

[Freddyfud]

Something I noticed unsurprisingly is the level of keeper play as a determinant for post season success. Some obvious examples are Silvester and Landa in the battle of Vegas last year. Others are Will Joseph for the Generals and the cinderella run of Washington College with Anthony Pinto 2 years ago to get to the final four.   

I think at this level consistent fundamentals such as positioning and ball distribution are just a given. What seems to set apart the shot stoppers above is the ability to make some saves destined for a goal, and not just PKs.  A challenging save at a critical time can change the momentum and ultimately the outcome of the game.

At Wesleyan yesterday in a game featuring rain, hail and leaves senior GK Travis Holiday for Rowan came up with this:

If that ball goes in Wesleyan is up 1-0 in the 21st minute of the game, and the outcome could have been very different.

Facing the 11th ranked team in scoring offense at 3 goals per game in Emory the Profs may need a few of these saves Saturday.

[Ron Boerger]

https://www.ncaa.com/champs-pass

Scroll down for completed games.

Thanks but only see completed games from last year (unless I'm still missing something)....

Don't click "Watch DIII (on-demand)" which are last year's games.  Click "DIII Men's Soccer" and all the games are available under "Recent". 

Thank you SKUD!

[SierraFD3soccer]

Something I noticed unsurprisingly is the level of keeper play as a determinant for post season success. Some obvious examples are Silvester and Landa in the battle of Vegas last year. Others are Will Joseph for the Generals and the cinderella run of Washington College with Anthony Pinto 2 years ago to get to the final four.   

I think at this level consistent fundamentals such as positioning and ball distribution are just a given. What seems to set apart the shot stoppers above is the ability to make some saves destined for a goal, and not just PKs.  A challenging save at a critical time can change the momentum and ultimately the outcome of the game.

At Wesleyan yesterday in a game featuring rain, hail and leaves senior GK Travis Holiday for Rowan came up with this:

If that ball goes in Wesleyan is up 1-0 in the 21st minute of the game, and the outcome could have been very different.

Facing the 11th ranked team in scoring offense at 3 goals per game in Emory the Profs may need a few of these saves Saturday.

Absolutely agree. Great save by Rowan.

You also can clearly say that Wes could have hung in there for quite awhile, but for the two clear keeper flubs which sunk its chances. One mistake Wes may have been able to overcome, but the second in first min of the 2nd half not so much. Definitely goes both ways.

Son was a keeper through his college years and he was not perfect, but knew that one mistake his team could manage.  2 not so much.

Also, I think the Wes field played a part. The keeper area after three games in wet weather seemed to be compromised (not like back in our days though where it often was a mud pit). Once again the advantage of playing on turf. I am not sure what the cost of turf v. grass. However, if you have grass you really, really have to invest in keeping it up. Otherwise, grass just becomes another factor in game teams have to deal with that they don't have to on turf. Only maybe a 6-10 places across D3 have grass that is in great shape like W&L, Dickinson, McDaniel and probably a few others. FYI, W&L and Dickinson is only recent as they used to have horrible grass fields.

Bringing lacrosse into the conversation which the grass does not always make a huge difference except around the goal area. High level lacrosse has greatly improved on turf from my days in the 80's. Much more about talent and speed than lucky/unlucky bounces. Most, if not all play on turf, and the games are much better especially around the goal mouth.

I know some will say "both teams had to play on the grass" argument. That is a cop out imo. In many cases on fields not kept up or weather compromised the fields, luck plays a big part. Not so much on turf. I much rather have skill and talent make the difference. In the Wes/Rowan game, I definitely think the keeper area played a big part in the first goal. 2nd not so much.

[Bucket]

Something I noticed unsurprisingly is the level of keeper play as a determinant for post season success. Some obvious examples are Silvester and Landa in the battle of Vegas last year. Others are Will Joseph for the Generals and the cinderella run of Washington College with Anthony Pinto 2 years ago to get to the final four.   

I think at this level consistent fundamentals such as positioning and ball distribution are just a given. What seems to set apart the shot stoppers above is the ability to make some saves destined for a goal, and not just PKs.  A challenging save at a critical time can change the momentum and ultimately the outcome of the game.

At Wesleyan yesterday in a game featuring rain, hail and leaves senior GK Travis Holiday for Rowan came up with this:

If that ball goes in Wesleyan is up 1-0 in the 21st minute of the game, and the outcome could have been very different.

Facing the 11th ranked team in scoring offense at 3 goals per game in Emory the Profs may need a few of these saves Saturday.

Nick Phinney was all that and more for Wheaton against Midd. 10 saves, with at least 4-5 of that spectacular variety you describe.

[Nescac2015aluum]

Great weekend of games!