Bracket Set For 2019 #BEfútbol Championship
NEW YORK – The bracket for the 2019 BIG EAST Men’s Soccer Championship presented by Jeep was solidified on Wednesday, the final play date of the regular season. Entering the day, the top three seeds were set and four of the six playoff spots were accounted for.
The fifth spot was claimed early, as Butler clinched with a 2-1 win over Xavier at home. Creighton played third-ranked Georgetown to a 1-1 double overtime draw which clinched the No. 4 seed for the Bluejays. Creighton and Butler finished tied for fourth with 13 points and a 4-4-1 league record. The Bluejays won the tie breaker with a head-to-head 3-2 double overtime win over the Bulldogs last week. Creighton will host No. 5 Butler in the first round at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday.
Marquette clinched the final spot in the tournament as the No. 6 seed. The Golden Eagles won 1-0 on the road at DePaul with a goal in the 62nd minute. Marquette was not master of its own destiny, as the Golden Eagles had to wait for the night result of Villanova at Seton Hall. The Wildcats played spoiler for the Pirates, who needed a win to make it in, with a 1-0 road victory. With the Pirate loss, Marquette moved into sole possession of sixth place with 12 points and a 4-5-0 league record and the sixth seed. The Golden Eagles will play at No. 3 Providence at noon on Saturday. The Friars seed was set prior to Wednesday’s finale. Providence capped off the regular season with a 2-0 win over St. John’s.
Both matches will stream live on the BIG EAST Digital Network presented by SoFi and will air on Caffeine TV, Twitter and YouTube.
The winner of Butler-Creighton will face No. 1 seed and regular season title winner Georgetown on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 1 p.m. The Hoyas finished the regular season unbeaten in league play at 7-0-2. The last time a team was unbeaten in BIG EAST play was the Hoyas in 2015 (9-0-0). With just two goals scored against the Hoyas all season, Georgetown set the BIG EAST record for fewest goals allowed.
The second semifinal will be played at No. 2 St. John’s at 6 p.m. The winner of the Butler-Creighton game will travel to Belson Stadium. The Red Storm finished with a 6-2-1 league record after the shutout loss to the Friars in the last game of the day.
Semifinal winners will meet at the site of the highest remaining seed on Nov. 17 to decide the conference champion and earn the league’s automatic bid into the 2019 NCAA Championship. The BIG EAST final will air live on FS2 at noon.
Four different teams have won the BIG EAST Men’s Soccer Championship over the last five seasons, with only Georgetown snagging multiple titles (2015, 2017, 2018) during that stretch. Creighton has finished runner-up in two of the last three conference tournaments, while Providence won its lone crown in 2014. Marquette was runner-up in 2018. The Bluejays and Friars have each made the BIG EAST Championship for seven consecutive seasons, while GU punched its ticket for the 12th time in 13 years and 26th time overall. St. John’s will be making its third consecutive appearance in what is their league-best 28th showing in program history. Marquette is making a back-to-back appearances, eighth time overall. The Golden Eagles returned to the BIG EAST tournament last year for the first time since 2014. Butler returns to the tournament field after missing out last season. The Bulldogs won it all in 2016 and appeared in three consecutive championships from 2015-2017.
2019 BIG EAST Men’s Soccer Championship
Presented By Jeep
First Round – Nov. 9 - BEDN
No. 6 seed Marquette at No. 3 seed Providence, Noon
No. 5 seed Butler at No. 4 seed Creighton, 8 p.m.
Semifinals - Nov. 13 - BEDN
No. 4/5 winner at No. 1 seed Georgetown, 1 p.m.
No. 3/6 winner at No. 2 seed St. John’s, 6 p.m.
Final - Nov. 17 – FS2
Semifinal Winners, 12 p.m.
All times Eastern - All games played at the higher seed