NEWPORT NEWS, Va.—Swarthmore College Men's Soccer continued its Cinderella story on Sunday night—the team left out of the Centennial Conference tournament—pulling off the improbable task of upsetting two nationally-ranked teams in penalty kicks away from home on back-to-back nights and then furthermore earning the right to host the next two rounds of the NCAA Tournament at Clothier Field.
The Garnet eliminated host No. 23 Christopher Newport University on Sunday night 0-0 (4-3 in penalty kicks) in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. By advancing past CNU, the Garnet have now reached the NCAA "Sweet 16" six times (1974, 1991, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2019).
A catchphrase in the NCAA Tournament is survive and advance, and the Garnet did just that on Sunday. Swarthmore didn't get off a shot in the first half and mustered three in the second half. Meanwhile, the Captains kept Swarthmore busy with 10 shots in regulation. Sophomore back Ben Lau had a shot in the 89th minute denied by CNU goalkeeper Justin Piercy to keep the game locked at 0-0.
Freshman goalkeeper Max Kral who earned his third clean sheet of the season, recorded five saves.
Four minutes into the second overtime period, Lau had another chance for the golden goal, but his header struck the crossbar and caromed harmlessly out of play.
For the second night in a row, penalty kicks were needed to decide the outcome. CNU shot first and made the attempt. Swarthmore responded with Lau sinking his try on a second attempt. His first attempt was denied, but the goalkeeper illegally encroached on his shot setting up a re-do.
Both teams missed on their next chances. Kral came up big with the diving save.
The Captains netted their next try, and Trevor Homstad, back in the lineup, finished in the back left of the net to even the score at 2-2.
Kral denied the next CNU attempt with his legs, and Conor Gill, the hero from Saturday, went the opposite way, pocketing the PK on the right.
CNU stayed alive with a successful try on the next shot, and then Swarthmore junior defender Jason Meuth stepped up to the dot with the chance to take the match. Meuth got Piercy to guess right and then he tapped in the shot to the right, clinching the match for the Garnet.
Swarthmore (11-3-5), once denied from the conference tournament, keeps on dancing into the NCAA Sweet Sixteen and will host the ball at Clothier Field on Nov. 23 and 24. The Garnet will face No. 18 Connecticut College, alma mater of head coach Eric Wagner, on Saturday at 1 p.m. At 3:30 p.m. on Saturday on Clothier, No. 5 Tufts will face No. 11 Washington & Lee. The winners of Saturday's games will play at 3 p.m. on Sunday.
