Nov. 18, 2002
For the first time in League history, the Patriot League gained three bids to an NCAA championship tournament. The honor goes to the PL men's soccer league, which placed three teams among the 48 that will play for the 2002 College Cup.
Holy Cross, American and Lehigh will all compete in the 2002 College Cup, which begins with first round games on campus sites this weekend.
The Patriot League is one of six that has at least three teams represented in the Tournament. The Atlantic Coast Conference leads the way with six, followed by the Big East (5) and Pac-10 (4). The PL is tied for fourth with the Colonial Athletic Association and the West Coast Conference, each with three representatives.
Regular-season champion Holy Cross outlasted third-seeded Lehigh on the 11th penalty kick Sunday night at Boston University's Nickerson Field to gain the League's automatic bid. The Crusaders (13-4-1) will visit Fairleigh Dickinson for a first-round contest this weekend (time TBA). It'll be HC's first appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
The winner of the HC vs. FDU match will play at fourth-seeded St. John's in the second round on Wednesday, Nov. 27.
Lehigh and American, which finished second in the regular-season standings, were both awarded at-large bids to the national championship tournament.
The Eagles (12-7-1), which lost to Lehigh in a shootout after 110 scoreless minutes in the PL Tournament semifinals, will host cross-town rival George Washington Saturday at Reeves Field at 1 p.m. The AU vs. GWU survivor will advance to a second-round match at second-seeded Maryland (17-4) on Nov. 27.
AU became the first team in PL history last year to win two games in the NCAA Tournament, topping both Ohio State (2-1) and Wake Forest (3-0) before losing in the third round at North Carolina, 1-0 in overtime. The Tar Heels went on to win the national championship.
The Mountain Hawks (11-7-2), despite its current four-game scoring drought, earned its second tournament ticket in the last three years and will host Northeastern in a first-round matchup Saturday at Ulrich Field at 7 p.m. The winner of the LU vs. Northeastern contest will advance to a second-round showdown at fifth-seeded Boston College on Nov. 27.
LU is making its second NCAA appearance in the last three years. The Mountain Hawks won the 2000 PL title on a shootout at Lafayette, then squared off against Virginia in the first round, losing by a 5-0 margin.