Sunday, November 12
Greenville, S.C.
1 p.m.
Mercer University
7-8-6
1
vs
1
#2 UNCG
10-7-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | OT 7 | OT 8 | OT 9 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| UNCG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Team Stats
MER
UNCG
Goals
1
1
Shots
10
15
Shots on Goal
5
4
Saves
3
4
Corners
6
8
Fouls
14
13
Scoring Plays
Jake Mezei (3)
Assisted By: Kobe Perez
shot to right side off cross from left
13:28
Leeroy Maguraushe (4)
Assisted By: Matteo Busio
shot to far left upper 90 from top of bo
24:56
Game Leaders
Shots
3
SOG
2
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
0
Players Mentioned
MF
/ Men's Soccer
F
/ Men's Soccer
GK
/ Men's Soccer
F/MF
/ Men's Soccer
MF
/ Men's Soccer
Bears Claim SoCon Title for Second Consecutive Season
11/12/2017 6:13:00 PM | Men's Soccer
GREENVILLE, S.C. – No. 4 Mercer claimed its second consecutive Southern Conference title after besting No. 2 seed UNCG in penalty kicks on Sunday, 3-2. Â
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STAT OF THE MATCH
Jeremy Booth recorded four saves in the penalty-kick shootout, launching Mercer into its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
Â
MAN OF THE MATCH
Booth garnered today's man of the match as well as the 2017 SoCon Tournament Most Outstanding Player after notching two saves in regulation followed by four saves in the shootout.
Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
Mercer jumped on board first in the 14th minute of play as Jake Mezei buried his third goal of the season, assisted by Kobe Perez. Perez found Mezei inside the middle of the 18-yard box, sliding a perfect pass to the junior midfielder. Mezei then chipped the ball past the outstretched arms of UNCG keeper Jon Milligan.
Â
The Spartans evened the match at one apiece in the 25th minute as Leeroy Maguraushe netted his fourth goal of the season, assisted by Matteo Busio.
Â
UNCG outshot Mercer, 9-3, in the second half but neither team was able to find the go-ahead goal as the two squads settled for overtime in the third meeting this season.
Â
The Bears saw two good looks at the game-winning goal in the first overtime period as Mezei and Will Bagrou each recorded one shot. Bagrou's shot trickled just left of the post as all Milligan could do was turn and watch.
Â
Neither squad was able to claim the match in the second overtime frame, setting up penalty kicks for the second consecutive game.
Â
Through the first five shots, both squads were tied at 2-2 after each keeper notched three saves apiece to set up the dramatic sudden victory shots. UNCG attempted its sixth shot first, however Booth slammed the door shut on the Spartans with a diving save. Bagrou then stepped up as the hero for the second consecutive game, knocking in the game-winning shot to launch the Bears into the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.
Â
RUZZO'S REMARKS
"I'm really proud of our team because of the fight and resiliency they show every day," stated head coach Brad Ruzzo. "We had some tough results that we couldn't control through the SoCon regular season and we wanted to show that we can finish with a tournament championship. Our senior class is outstanding and they led the whole way this weekend and to be back-to-back SoCon Tournament champions is amazing. We look forward to competing in the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row."
Â
NOTABLES
RECORDS UPDATE
NEXT MATCH
SoCon Men's Soccer Championship All-Tournament TeamÂ
Nick Spielman, ETSU
Jonny Sutherland, ETSU
Zach Jackson, Furman
Cameron Robinson, Furman
Matteo Busio, UNCG
Josh Masten, UNCG
Jon Milligan, UNCG
Conner Antley, Mercer
Will Bagrou, Mercer
Jeremy Booth, Mercer
Kobe Perez, Mercer
Most Outstanding PlayerÂ
Jeremy Booth, Mercer
Pinnacle Award (highest cumulative GPA among championship-eligible student-athletes on winning team)
JR Derose, Mercer
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's Soccer, please follow the Bears on social media at @Mercer_MSoccer (Twitter), MercerMSoccer (Instagram) and /MercerMSoccer (Facebook) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
Â
STAT OF THE MATCH
Jeremy Booth recorded four saves in the penalty-kick shootout, launching Mercer into its second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
Â
MAN OF THE MATCH
Booth garnered today's man of the match as well as the 2017 SoCon Tournament Most Outstanding Player after notching two saves in regulation followed by four saves in the shootout.
Â
HOW IT HAPPENED
Mercer jumped on board first in the 14th minute of play as Jake Mezei buried his third goal of the season, assisted by Kobe Perez. Perez found Mezei inside the middle of the 18-yard box, sliding a perfect pass to the junior midfielder. Mezei then chipped the ball past the outstretched arms of UNCG keeper Jon Milligan.
Â
The Spartans evened the match at one apiece in the 25th minute as Leeroy Maguraushe netted his fourth goal of the season, assisted by Matteo Busio.
Â
UNCG outshot Mercer, 9-3, in the second half but neither team was able to find the go-ahead goal as the two squads settled for overtime in the third meeting this season.
Â
The Bears saw two good looks at the game-winning goal in the first overtime period as Mezei and Will Bagrou each recorded one shot. Bagrou's shot trickled just left of the post as all Milligan could do was turn and watch.
Â
Neither squad was able to claim the match in the second overtime frame, setting up penalty kicks for the second consecutive game.
Â
Through the first five shots, both squads were tied at 2-2 after each keeper notched three saves apiece to set up the dramatic sudden victory shots. UNCG attempted its sixth shot first, however Booth slammed the door shut on the Spartans with a diving save. Bagrou then stepped up as the hero for the second consecutive game, knocking in the game-winning shot to launch the Bears into the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.
Â
RUZZO'S REMARKS
"I'm really proud of our team because of the fight and resiliency they show every day," stated head coach Brad Ruzzo. "We had some tough results that we couldn't control through the SoCon regular season and we wanted to show that we can finish with a tournament championship. Our senior class is outstanding and they led the whole way this weekend and to be back-to-back SoCon Tournament champions is amazing. We look forward to competing in the NCAA tournament for the second year in a row."
Â
NOTABLES
- Mercer claimed its second consecutive SoCon Tournament title after ousting UNCG in penalty kicks, 3-2.
- Mercer improved to 5-1-3 in SoCon Tournament play following today's match.
- The Bears competed in their 13th overtime game this season, holding a record of 1-6-6.
- Conner Antley, Bagrou, Booth and Kobe Perez were named to the SoCon All-Tournament team.
- JR Derose claimed the Pinnacle Award marking the second year that a Bear captured the distinguished honor.
RECORDS UPDATE
- Mercer: 7-8-6
- UNCG: 10-7-3
NEXT MATCH
- Mercer will await the NCAA selection show on Monday at 1 p.m. where it will find out its next opponent as well as the date and location of the match.
SoCon Men's Soccer Championship All-Tournament TeamÂ
Nick Spielman, ETSU
Jonny Sutherland, ETSU
Zach Jackson, Furman
Cameron Robinson, Furman
Matteo Busio, UNCG
Josh Masten, UNCG
Jon Milligan, UNCG
Conner Antley, Mercer
Will Bagrou, Mercer
Jeremy Booth, Mercer
Kobe Perez, Mercer
Most Outstanding PlayerÂ
Jeremy Booth, Mercer
Pinnacle Award (highest cumulative GPA among championship-eligible student-athletes on winning team)
JR Derose, Mercer
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Men's Soccer, please follow the Bears on social media at @Mercer_MSoccer (Twitter), MercerMSoccer (Instagram) and /MercerMSoccer (Facebook) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
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