NCAA DIII BRACKET
GAMBIER, Ohio – For the second time in the last four seasons, the Kenyon College Lords will participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III men's soccer tournament. The Lords learned Monday from the NCAA that they will play their first-round game Friday against the Ohio Northern University Polar Bears. The game has a 7:30 p.m. (CST) start time and will be played at Joe Bean Stadium on the campus of Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois.
Kenyon was one of 61 teams to make the tournament. Forty-one teams earned automatic berths by winning their conference, one team was selected from independent institutions, and 19 teams, including Kenyon, received at-large bids. Ohio Northern captured one of the automatic berths by winning the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament with a 3-0 win over John Carroll University in the championship game.
The Lords made it to the championship game of the North Coast Athletic Conference tournament, but fell 3-1 to Ohio Wesleyan University, the No. 1-ranked team in the nation. The loss put Kenyon's overall record at 14-4-3.
The appearance in the NCAA tournament will be Kenyon's tenth overall and first since the 2010 season when they defeated York College, 1-0, in the first round and then fell to Ohio Wesleyan, 2-0, in the second round.
The Polar Bears will enter the tournament with an 18-3-0 overall record. Last season, the Ohio Northern men made it all the way to the NCAA tournament's final game, but were steamrolled by Messiah College, 5-1. The tournament scene is nothing new to the Polar Bears, who reached the Elite 8 in 2008 and made the Sweet 16 in 2011.
Prior to Kenyon's Friday night game with Ohio Northern, host Wheaton will take on Thomas More College at 5 p.m. (CST). The winners of those two games will then meet Saturday at 5 p.m. (CST) to determine who moves on to the NCAA Sectionals (Sweet 16).
Admission for each day is for $6 for adults, $3 for students and senior citizens, and $2 for ages 3-12. For those who cannot make the trip, Wheaton will be providing live stats and live video.
