STANFORD, CALIF. – The No. 12 UNC Greensboro (UNCG) men's soccer team will be advancing, for the first time in the Spartans' Division I history, to the NCAA Division I Elite 8 after moving on following a penalty shootout against No. 5 Stanford.
The Spartans tied the Cardinal 1-1 following regulation and two 10-minute overtime periods. UNCG then upset Stanford in a penalty shootout with a score of 3-1.
The round of 16 was the fourth time in Division I program history for the Spartans, after earning their 21
st bid as a program and 12
th Division I ticket after winning the 2022 SoCon Tournament.
UNCG is now 8-9-3 overall in NCAA Division I Tournament play with its first match in program history against Stanford.
From Head Coach Chris Rich
"Another incredible moment by our group. Obviously an extremely difficult game against a top Stanford team. They are challenging to prepare for and they are difficult to play against. There are so many set piece moments you have to deal with, so many crosses, penalty box entries. But, the guys were resilient all night. They had a gutsy performance because it required a lot to deal with those moments and I am so proud of the way they fought all game.
"Obviously, going into regulation and then overtime, we felt we were going to win. It is never a guarantee, but our belief was high all game. Once we got to the PK shootout, we were super confident. We know we have a top goalkeeper in PK shootouts in Isaac and we knew we were prepared for that moment. Our guys were excellent in the shootout, Isaac was surreal saving the first three."
"I am so proud of our program, our guys, our staff, our university. This is a great accomplishment for everyone and it feels super incredible to be in the Elite 8."
From sophomore goalkeeper Isaac Briner
"It is a feeling I can't really explain. To come over the west coast and to move the team on to the Elite 8 is something very special and something I will never forget. On top of that, to do it in front of my family and close to my hometown was even more special. It is something I will never forget.
The team chemistry is unbelievable, and we really are a family. In games like this, a family really comes together and without everyone playing their part in this game, we would not be standing here moving on to the Elite 8. It took every single person completing their role and stepping up when needed to really push us through. It comes down to the family mentality and what our coaches built here."
How it Happened
UNCG and Stanford both settled into each other's intense style of play, as the Spartans saw two early corner kicks in the first 10 minutes. The Cardinal reacted and tallied two shots and a corner kick of their own in the following three minutes. In the next five minutes of play, UNCG had three more corner kicks and
Ismail El Harchi connected for the first shot on goal of the game in the 17
th minute.
In the 21
st minute,
J.C. Ngando took a defender down the right side of the field and the Cardinal back heeled it to clear the ball, but the sophomore midfielder was still around to collect the mis-disposition. Ngando then took the ball into the 18-yard box to cut it back to a charging
Marco Afonso who hit a one-timer with his left foot for a 1-0 lead at 20:02.
Stanford responded at 25:46 with its own tally from Cam Cilley who struck the ball to the back of the net just outside of the 18-yard box after collecting a pass from Keegan Tingey. Tingey had just played the ball off a defender to capitalize on the moment inside the box.
At the end of regulation, Stanford held the shot advantage, 9-3. The Cardinal also held the advantage in the first and second overtimes tallying three total shots.
After two, 10-minute overtime periods, UNCG and Stanford got set for a penalty shootout, where once again the Spartans substituted
Isaac Briner in for
Niclas Wild in net. The first attempt by the Cardinal was stopped by Briner, while
Basile Marc's kick found the back of the net. Stanford and UNCG's attempts were both missed in round two. Stanford's third attempt was also stopped by Briner, as
Ethan Conley scored to put UNCG up, 2-0. Even though Stanford's Connor Evans made the fourth attempt, the Spartans prevailed as
Emmanuel Hagan put away the game with his final kick and a scored of 3-1.
Coach Rich on being the first UNCG team to make the Division I Elite 8
"It is indescribable. This has been a process of building this program to where it is. This program has a history of success in postseason, especially in Division III. It made some runs in Division I back in the early 2000s. But to be the first team to make it to the Elite 8 in Division I history is a special moment for these guys, for our staff, for the university. We are thrilled, pumped, excited – all the words. We are going to enjoy this for sure tonight and then tomorrow we will turn to recovery, traveling back and preparing for a very good Indiana team."
By the Numbers
- Afonso scored his eighth goal of the season.
- Ngando tallied his 14th assist of the season.
- Niclas Wild made three saves in the game.
- Stanford outshot UNCG 12-3.
- The Cardinal had four shots on goal to the Spartans' two.
- UNCG is unbeaten against six teams in the top-40 RPI: Clemson (No. 5), Stanford (No. 8), SMU (No. 14), Louisville (No. 27), Elon (No. 29), and Ohio State (No. 39).
Records
UNCG: 13-1-6, 4-0-1 SoCon
Stanford: 12-2-6, 4-2-4 Pac-12
Up Next
The Spartans will host No. 13 Indiana in the next round of the NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament on Saturday, December 3 with a start time of 5:00 p.m. at UNCG Soccer Stadium. More information to follow regarding the game.
