UMass Wins Atlantic-10

Tournament Berth is Minutemen's Second

November 18, 2007

DAYTON, Ohio – The UMass men’s soccer team earned its second-ever NCAA Tournament berth with a 2-0 shutout win over Charlotte in the Atlantic-10 Championship Sunday.

Prince Ofosu tallied a second half goal for UMass (13-7-1), which has posted an 11-3-1 record over the last 15 games en route to the NCAA Tournament berth. The Minutemen also received help from the 49ers after a first half own-goal and goalkeeper Zack Simmons earned his ninth shutout of the season and the 23rd of his career.

Simmons and Kenny Cook were named to the All-Tournament Team and Simmons was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Performer.

UMass took a 1-0 lead in the 30th minute when Charlotte misplayed a clear out of their goal box that deflected off the back of a 49er defender and went into the goal past keeper David Martin.

In the second half, Ofosu scored in the 75th minute for the insurance goal.

Both teams finished with eight shots each. The Minutemen had a slight edge in corner kicks, 3-to-2. Simmons finished the game with five saves giving him the UMass school record for career stops with 278. Martin made three saves on the day.

The Minutemen opened the tournament with a 1-1 tie against host-school Dayton. UMass advanced on penalty kicks to the semifinal round and defeated two-time defending A-10 Champion Rhode Island 1-0. With the one goal allowed in the tournament, UMass has allowed just 16 goals this season which is the ninth fewest in school history and the fewest since the 1979 season.

The NCAA Tournament will begin next Friday and Saturday with first round games and campus sites. The Field will be announced on Monday, November 19 on ESPNews between 5:30 and 6 p.m. Eastern time. In addition, the bracket will be posted on www.ncaasports.com after the conclusion of the selection show.

ADD TO YOUR SOCIAL BOOKMARKS: Blink Del.icio.us Digg
Furl Google Simpy Spurl Technorati Y! MyWeb