NCAA Tournament 2025

[kansas hokie]

Emory is very used to the bus trip as they have had to make that same drive twice already in the NCAA tournament. Unlike all the others, Emory never played at home. Bus rides to Farmville, VA (Hampden-Sydney) and Lynchburg, VA (Lynchburg) for the first two weekends. Roanoke will be easier after all of that. Could be an advantage to be in a similar travel rhythm.

Here's a link to Emory men's soccer Instagram account where the important bit of info (as they are interviewed about their movie choices for the trip) is that it sounds like they are the only school that will be traveling to the Final Four by bus to Salem, VA.  That checks out since it is a 419 mile trip between Emory and Roanoke, but an approximately 6.5 hour bus ride (plus stops) doesn't sound like a ton of fun.  Sounds like they'll need more movies (or maybe some books too with finals coming up!)

[Kuiper]

NCAA Semifinal Preview Game #2

Emory (16-1-4)(NPI #5) v. Trinity (19-1-1)(NPI #12) on Friday, 12/5 at 6:30 PM EST @ Roanoke College/Salem, VA

Path to the Final Four

Emory:

Maryville 3-1 @ Hampden-Sydney
Hampden-Sydney 3-0 @ Hampden-Sydney
Rowan 2-0 @ Lynchburg
Dickinson 0-0 (4-5 in PKs) @ Lynchburg

Trinity:

Hardin-Simmons 5-0 @ Trinity
Texas Lutheran 2-0 @ Trinity
Wash. U. 3-0 @ Wash. U.
Augsburg 5-0 @ Wash. U.

A few things about this matchup that may only be of interest to me:

1.  Both teams are road warriors

Emory is the only team in the Final Four to get here entirely on the road, including beating Hampden-Sydney on its home field.  Maybe that's because Emory played a lot more games away from home than at home.  The last time Emory played a home game was October 26th.  In fact, Emory only played 6 home games all season, although it also played two teams at nearby Oglethorpe in neutral-site matches.  Emory was 7-0-2 in away games and 5-0-1 in neutral site games.  Of course, Emory is also used to long travel as part of being in the UAA, as this year it traveled to Waltham, MA, Pittsburgh, PA, Cleveland, OH, and Rochester, NY.  The trip to Salem, VA is comparatively a breeze.  Emory is the closest school to Roanoke College and, because it is under 500 miles, the only one that got here by bus.  No changing planes in Charlotte or Atlanta for the Emory players! 

Trinity played its first two games at home in the NCAA tournament, but unlike Emory, Tufts, and St. Olaf, it had to take a flight to its Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games.  It played considerably more home games than Emory, but it still went 6-0 in away games and 1-1-1 in neutral-site games.  Like Emory, it also beat Wash. U. on its home field in the Sweet 16.

2.  Emory might as well be the home team in Virginia.

It is the only team to play all of its NCAA tournament games in the state of Virginia - first two rounds at Hampden-Sydney, second two rounds at Lynchburg, and Final Four at Roanoke.  Plus, it's a Region VI school (so is Trinity supposedly because of its membership in the SAA, but United Soccer Coaches begs to differ).

3.  The South will rise again . . . maybe

The last time a team from the South won the D3 Men's Soccer Championship was . . . Trinity in 2003.

If you insist that Texas is not the "real" South despite being classified as the West South Central Division of the South by the U.S. Census Bureau, the last time a team from the South won the championship was 1994 when Bethany (W. Va.) won it.  And if you're not buying that even though West Virginia is classified as part of the South Atlantic Division of the South by the U.S. Census Bureau, then the last time was 1987 and UNC Greensboro.  Regardless of your personal definition, it's been a long time.  And if you agree that both Texas and Georgia are part of the South, then we are guaranteed to have a school from the South in the NCAA championship game for the first time since 2010 when Lynchburg lost to Messiah

4.  Statistical Twins

These two teams are very closely matched on several offensive and defensive stats

Goals scored (per game)/conceded (per game):

Trinity (59/2.81)/(12/0.57)
Emory (58/2.76)/(13/0.62)

Assists/opponent assists

Trinity 50/7
Emory 46/9

Corners taken/conceded

Trinity 160/42 
Emory 154/38

5.  Common opponents

Berry

Trinity won 4-1 (10/5) and tied 1-1 (Berry 5-3 on PKs) (11/7 in SAA Championship Game)
Emory won 3-1 (9/13)

Wash. U.

Trinity won 3-0 (11/22 in Sweet 16 @ Wash. U.)
Emory lost 0-1 (10/26 @ Emory)

6.  Players to watch

Emory

First team All Region VI forward/midfielder Ignacio Cubeddu (12g/6a) and 2nd team All Region VI midfielder Josh Grand (6g/10a) were the offensive leaders of the team this season, but Grand hasn't played since October 5th (making his stats all the more impressive).  Adeyemi Oni (7g/4a) often plays a lone striker and can beat defenders 1 v. 1, although he's been quiet in the playoffs.  1st team All Region defender Logan Sternen holds down the defense (although he has moved up to midfield in Grand's absence and also contributed six goals this year, including 2 in the tournament).  Goalkeeper Geoffrey Halpern has been tested in the tournament and has come up big. 

Trinity

On offense, 1st Team All Region X forward Samuel Theiss is the big scorer this season, with 15 goals, but felow 1st Team All Region X forward Adam Knutsen (8g/5a) is the fulcrum for a lot of the team's passing and movement in and around the box and on the wings.  They have a ton of crafty players.  Max Salinas, Julian Lopez, and Alex Ramirez are great ball carriers who can dribble through crowds in the middle of the field (especially Salinas), Zach Anderson is a great passer and playmaker, Alex Baltov can bring it up the wings.  On defense, 1st team All Region X defenders Luke Chandler and Daniel Urquidi are very solid and Cade Dougan is outstanding in front of them or joining them along with Luke Mayfield.  As with Emory's keeper, Jayden Schell has picked things up in the tournament run.

Overview

Big issue for Emory might be the team's depth, or lack thereof. They had 7 players play the full 110 against Dickinson, 2 more play 100, and one play 90.  They only used 4 subs, and really only relied upon 2 bench players with a third chipping in with 20 minutes and the fourth with 6.  That might have been because the coaching staff knew they had plenty of time to recover whether they won or lost, but they also only used 4 players (2 for less than 15 minutes) in its 2-0 win over Rowan. In close games, they just don't seem to trust a lot of players (or they don't have a lot of healthy players).

By contrast, Trinity's biggest strength might be its depth.  They can do line changes and not miss a beat and they have both young and experienced players to choose from. They often wear teams down mentally and physically with their possession game. 

The question is whether Trinity can stick with some of the most talented and physical players on counter attacks.  Trinity is really good at transition play off of a press, but that can leave them exposed in the back.  It will be interesting to see if both offenses come out flying or one or both teams start conservatively.

[SKUD]

Has Trinity fixed their inability to defend set pieces?  Also, very similar weather forecast on Friday (to last year in Vermont) when they packed the bus at halftime and left the field.

[SierraFD3soccer]

Only 5 loses among the final 4. That is impressive! No Cinderella this year.

[Kuiper]

Has Trinity fixed their inability to defend set pieces?  Also, very similar weather forecast on Friday (to last year in Vermont) when they packed the bus at halftime and left the field.

Trinity hasn't conceded a goal in the four tournament games, the only Final Four team to accomplish that feat, while only allowing 6 corners over the 4 games. So, at least in that form of set piece, they both haven't conceded goals, but they also haven't conceded many opportunities to the opponent either.  The last goal they conceded was a PK to Berry in the SAA championship game.  The last goal they conceded off of a free kick might have been in its one loss against Christopher Newport back on Sept. 19th, although I'm not sure about that.  Three of their four most recent goals against have been PKs, but I would characterize the weakness there in being overagressive in the box (or refs quick to whistle Pks) since PK "defense" isn't really a thing.  It's tough to draw strong conclusions when the team has given up so few goals.

More broadly, the reality is that none of the Final Four teams are really "weak" at much of anything.  As SierraFD3soccer points out, there are no teams that just got hot at the right time this year and over-performed.  They all were consistently strong.  St. Olaf has given up the most goals, but it's also scored the most goals, so they just seem to play a more consistently attacking style of play while also being part of a conference where there are tons of strong offensive players and styles.

As for the weather, that is certainly an area where Trinity, coming from the warmest climate of the teams and having failed to overcome it last year in the tournament, will have to prove itself.  Not sure it's a massive disadvantage against Emory, though, as compared with against St. Olaf and Tufts.  Whichever team survives in this second semifinal game will then play the two northern teams in somewhat better weather on Sunday.

[Sandon Mibut]

Has NCAA announced host sites for the Final 4 in any upcoming years? I thought I had read them somewhere but I cannot find anything.

Go Tufts!

[Kuiper]

Has NCAA announced host sites for the Final 4 in any upcoming years? I thought I had read them somewhere but I cannot find anything.

Go Tufts!

Columbus, OH in 2026
Pittsburgh, PA in 2027

As I said in an earlier post, Salem, VA may end up looking like a warm weather spot compared to those two host sites.

[Hopkins92]

I guess I don't understand the venue selection thinking process.

Vegas was weird, but at least not a Frost Bowl. Pittsburgh and Columbus??

Probably a question for the UAA thread... Is Carnegie Mellon's field still so dark and gloomy? I have to imagine the swapped out of that location I played in many moons ago. Their lights were substandard... It was weird.

[SierraFD3soccer]

All the holiday spots. Also I'm guessing, Salem is cheap.

[Kuiper]

I guess I don't understand the venue selection thinking process.

Vegas was weird, but at least not a Frost Bowl. Pittsburgh and Columbus??

Probably a question for the UAA thread... Is Carnegie Mellon's field still so dark and gloomy? I have to imagine the swapped out of that location I played in many moons ago. Their lights were substandard... It was weird.

In 2024, they put up for bid 240 championship events simultaneously, presumably in an attempt to use economies of scale to leverage higher bids.  At the same time, they moved to a two year, rather than four year, bid cycle.  The sport specific committees made the initial decisions, but there are committees above them that made the final call. 

In this process, there has been a shift from schools to cities who have been bidding for a lot of these events, especially as cities/counties etc have facilities sitting empty and hotel rooms to spare and they have government dollars to throw at the events.  Las Vegas was definitely a city bid in the previous cycle.  They used UNLV, but they don't even have a DIII school in Nevada.  That was primarily to attract more business to the area. DIII soccer (which includes both men's and women's finals) isn't exactly the DI basketball final four, but it is an attractive event for mid-size cities given the size of the rosters, the number of families and friends who attend, and the relative lack of tourism in early December.  They might get between 500-1000 people for a single weekend between the Men's and Women's Final Fours, which isn't nothing, plus many more who see the city on screen watching the games.  Plus, cities may see lower-level sports championships as gateways to getting more well-attended events.  If they do a good job with soccer, they can move up, not just in bigger sports, but to D1 events. 

Columbus 2026 is technically being hosted by Capital, but the game will be at Historic Crew Stadium and will be co-hosted by the Greater Columbus Sports Commission (an organization charged with trying to attract these events for the city).  It's too big for this event, but it's definitely a cool soccer-specific former MLS venue.  It's also a venue where they are trying to find events to fill the stadium now that the Crew have moved downtown.  It's currently used by Columbus Crew 2 in MLS Next Pro and its the home of the MLS teams' training facility and Performance Center, which means the teams will probably get to experience first class locker rooms, practice facilities etc.

Pittsburgh 2027 is technically being hosted by the Presidents' Athletics Conference, but it's being co-hosted by SportsPITTSBURGH, which is their version of the Greater Columbus Sports Commission.  The game will be played at Highmark stadium, a beautiful facility located on the banks of the Monongahela River and with kind of spectacular city views.

It's the home of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, a USL Championship club, and the Pittsburgh Riveters, a USL-W Club.  It also should provide good locker room space and professional-level amenities.

I think this is the future of DIII.  It needs to find ways to finance the championships without relying on the NCAA basketball tournament revenue, because that could go away.  This is one way to do so.

[SierraFD3soccer]

Tufts will not sweep the womans and mens as the women lost in the semis. Either way that is pretty impressive they even had a chance.

So is Tufts now the D1 version of Connecticut basketball (2014 and 2004)?

[Kuiper]

It's not the Super Bowl media day, but the players are already pros at spouting cliches.  No bulletin board material here

St. Olaf

St. Olaf Men's Soccer Prepares for Final Four

We're not nervous

As the only team in the 2025 Final Four to have previously reached this stage of the tournament since 2022, the Oles have an advantage in experience. Six players on the current roster played in the 2023 National Championship game, including the entire centerback trio of Hillis, Caspar Olseth '26, and Ben Beckman '26. The team's leaders have also gotten to this stage before, and are using that experience to define their mentality.

"You don't really get nervous for those big games anymore," Hillis said. "The biggest game of your life you've already played, so every game after that is another gift."

It doesn't make a difference where we play the game

Playing at Roanoke College is a special bonus for the group. Having already lifted a national championship on this exact field, active members of the 2023 National Championship team return to the place where they made history. For the newer members on the team, it's a chance to add their own victorious chapter to the story. Hillis insists playing in Virginia isn't important to the team's mentality, but is certainly welcome.

"It doesn't make a difference, but we are excited to go back to Roanoke," Hillis said. "We like Virginia a lot. Cool little place — great facilities, great field."

Tufts

Men's Soccer Advances to NCAA Final Four

We gave it our all

Needing to close out the win, the Jumbos parked the bus. Though the Polar Bears picked up three corner kicks and forced Antic to make another save, the Jumbos were able to weather the storm, closing out the 2–1 win and punching their tickets to the Final Four.

"Everyone was incredibly motivated to keep our season going. ... That was the overarching mentality - to empty the tanks and give everything we had," Yanez said.

Our opponent is very good

Tufts will travel to Salem, Va. to take on No. 4 ranked St. Olaf College in the semifinals on Dec. 5. Until then, the Jumbos will give thanks for their incredible season during the holiday and then resume training.

"St Olaf will be a challenging opponent, and we expect it to be a great game. We are incredibly excited for the opportunity!" Yanez wrote.

Emory

Men's and Women's Soccer Teams Advance to the Final Four

We had full confidence in all our teammates

The Eagles defeated Dickinson College (Pa.) in penalty kicks after an exciting but scoreless 110 minutes of play. Men's soccer head coach Cory Greiner entrusted sophomore defender Josh Ali with the first penalty. Ali kept his cool, converting the penalty and getting the Eagles on the board. Ali admitted the moment was not one he had pictured leading up to the season.

"If you had told me at the beginning of the season in August that I'd be doing that, I definitely wouldn't believe you," Ali said. "Going into the tournament, we knew that at least one game was going to be a tight one ... so, we were prepared when the moment came. We had full confidence in each and every one of the guys."

We're still hungry

In addition to working toward high-pressure moments like the penalty kick, Cubeddu said he is pursuing a championship even in the face of adversity in his own soccer career.

"The standard for me has always been trying to win a national championship," Cubeddu said. "Coming here to a new team, there's always a lot of doubt, like, 'Oh, can you do it again? ... Can you do it with all the doubt and with everything on the line?'"

Despite the thrilling victory, Cubeddu and the Eagles are not satisfied yet. The team has their eyes set on something bigger: a national title.

Trinity

No player quotes in the story about the team qualifying for the Final Four, but they do have this classic cliche in the story after the first round win that I'm sure the player would have repeated if he had been asked after the Augsburg win to qualify for the Final Four:

"We're just doing our job at the end of the day," Theiss said. "We have an end goal. It's far from over for us."

[VASoccerDad]

Tufts will not sweep the womans and mens as the women lost in the semis. Either way that is pretty impressive they even had a chance.

So is Tufts now the D1 version of Connecticut basketball (2014 and 2004)?

No, but Emory still can.

[SKUD]

Tufts will not sweep the womans and mens as the women lost in the semis. Either way that is pretty impressive they even had a chance.

So is Tufts now the D1 version of Connecticut basketball (2014 and 2004)?

Tufts also won field hockey. One evil empire takes the touch from another.

2"-6" of snow expected in VA this morning.

[SierraFD3soccer]

True as to Emory! Did not see that coming.

Freezing weather today in Salem especially as the sun sets so early. I think the snow will have come and gone by game time. Might be in the corners etc. Great its on turf. Melting snow for the finals is not great. https://weather.com/weather/today/l/cd3a86e5f64893bbb4e801f8f7f0f3d31adfd79b22f2c734c378aebb52aca333

Says snow showers so accumulation may not be as much.