Men's Soccer Begins Another Run In NCAA Tournament Friday

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ERIE, Pa. The West Chester Golden Rams men's soccer team (14-4-1) is the seventh seed in the NCAA Atlantic Regional and will face off against 10th seed Assumption College (12-7) of the Northeast-10 Conference on Friday. The match will take place at 12 p.m. on Friday on the campus of the second seed Gannon University.

Ticket window at McConnell Family Stadium open one hour prior to the start of each session. Tickets for adults are $6 and students/seniors/children 2-12 are $4.
 
This is the program's fourth consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament, and it's fifth since the program transferred into Division II from Division I in 1983. West Chester made the Division I tournament eight times and were National Champions in 1961. Last year, the Golden Rams looked to add a Division II Championship to the program resume but lost to Barry University in the championship game 2-1. Overall, the men's soccer team owns a 12-11 NCAA record, with a 5-4 record at the Division II level.
 
West Chester enters the NCAA tournament following a 1-1 performance in the PSAC conference tournament. The Golden Rams defeated East Stroudsburg 2-0 in the PSAC Quarterfinal before losing to Gannon 2-1 in overtime in the Semifinals on Friday. Colin Muller (Bethlehem, Pa. / Liberty) scored the goal for the Golden Rams against Gannon.
 
The Golden Rams are led offensively by PSAC First-Team All-Conference and All-Atlantic Region Second Team members Doug Goitia (Mount Pocono, PA / Pocono Mountain East) and Stephen Thompson (Mechanicsburg, PA / Cumberland Valley). Goitia has scored a team-leading eight goals and one assist this season, tallying three game-winning goals for the Golden Rams. Thompson has recorded a team-high six assists while also scoring four goals (one game-winner). PSAC Second-Team All-Conference Shane Hartey (Runnemede, N.J. / Triton Hall) has also played a key role off the bench for the Golden Rams, having scored six goals during the second half of the season, including three game-winning goals.
 
Defense has been crucial to the Golden Rams' success this season and has been led by a PSAC First-Team All-Conference contingent of Craig Potts (Stewartstown, Pa. / Kennard-Dale) and Colin Muller. Potts is the PSAC East Division Defensive Player of the Year and an All-Atlantic Region First Team member. He has acted as the back line for a Golden Rams defense that has allowed 16 goals in 19 games this season. Potts has also added one goal and one assist offensively this season. Muller also represents West Chester on the All-Atlantic Region Second Team and has been a key player in the defense-to-offense transition and has scored two goals with four assists this season.
 
Capping off the defensive efforts for West Chester is freshman goalkeeper Daniel Good (Exton, PA / Downingtown East). Good was named ECAC Division II Rookie of the Month for the month of October and was also named to the PSAC Second-Team All-Conference in his first collegiate season. Good has started 18 of 19 games for the Golden Rams, allowing 0.85 goals per game. Good has made 51 saves this season on the way to nine shutouts in net for the Golden Rams.
 
Leading the team is head coach Michael Benn. Benn is in his seventh year at the helm for the Golden Rams, and during that short time, he has transformed the Golden Rams' soccer program into a perennial contender in both the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and the NCAA. Benn owns an overall record of 84-35-16 during his tenure with the Golden Rams and is responsible for leading the Golden Rams to their first NCAA playoff win in over 50 years when they defeated East Stroudsburg in 2017. The following year, Benn took the Golden Rams to Championship game against Barry University.
 
The Assumption Greyhounds are coming off a 2-1 victory against Saint Rose in the Northeast-10 Championship game on Saturday. The Greyhounds are led offensively by senior Jason Lages, who has scored 11 goals and five assists this season. The Greyhounds as a team have scored 33 goals this season while allowing 29 goals.
 
The winner of Friday's match will face off against host Gannon University on Sunday, November 24th.