2012 BIG EAST Men's Soccer Championship Bracket Set
BRACKET
Connecticut and Georgetown tied for first place in the BIG EAST Blue Division, while Louisville captured the Red Division regular-season title. The 2012 regular season ended on Oct. 27 with matchups set for the 10-team 2012 BIG EAST Men's Soccer Championship, which begin with first-round games on Oct. 31. The top three seeds in each division earned byes to the quarterfinal round on Nov. 3.
First Round Games - Oct. 31
No. 5 Red Cincinnati at
No. 4 Blue Marquette 8 p.m.
No. 5 Blue Seton Hall at
No. 4 Red Villanova 2 p.m.
Quarterfinals - Nov. 3
Winner of Cincinnati/Marquette at
No. 1 Red Louisville 7 p.m.
No. 3 Red St. John's at
No. 2 Blue Georgetown 1 p.m.
Winner of Villanova/Seton Hall at
No. 1 Blue Connecticut 7 p.m.
No. 3 Blue Notre Dame at
No. 2 Red Syracuse 7 p.m.
Semifinals - Nov. 9 at Red Bull Arena 5/7:30 p.m.
Final - Nov. 11 at Red Bull Arena 12 p.m.
Louisville, ranked No. 14/18 nationally, clinched the BIG EAST Red Division regular season title with a league mark of 7-1-0. The Cardinals head into the postseason with a 12-4-1 overall record. Louisville earned a bye to the quarterfinals as the No. 1 seed and will host the winner of Cincinnati at Marquette on Nov. 3 at 7 p.m. ET. UofL has made the postseason every year since 2006.
Georgetown, ranked No. 6/8 nationally, clinched a share of its second BIG EAST Blue Division Championship in three years. The Hoyas finished the regular season with a mark of 15-2-1 overall and 6-2 in BIG EAST play. Georgetown has won just three regular season championships in program history including two under head coach Brian Wiese and one in 1994.
Connecticut, ranked No. 3/4 nationally, earned a share of the BIG EAST regular-season title for the 12th time overall and the first since 2009. Connecticut has 19 BIG EAST Titles (12 Regular Season, 7 Tournament).UConn improved its unbeaten streak at home to 35 games to tie the school record set from 1980-1982. That mark is the seventh longest in NCAA history. The Huskies will host the winner of the first-round matchup between Villanova and Seton Hall on Nov. 3 at 7 p.m.
Syracuse concluded its winningest regular season since 1988 with a 12-5 overall record and a 5-3 mark in conference play. The Orange reached the tournament for the first time since 2005. SU earned the No. 2 seed in the Red Division and a bye to the quarterfinals. The Orange will host Notre Dame at 7 p.m. ET on Nov. 3.
Notre Dame, ranked No. 8/7 nationally, extended its streak, reaching the tournament every year since 2001. The Fighting Irish finished the regular season 13-3-1 overall and 5-2-1 in BIG EAST action. Notre Dame is making its 12th-straight appearance in the playoffs.
St. John's, ranked No. 18 in the NSCAA national poll, extended its active streak of qualifying for the BIG EAST Championship to 22-consecutive seasons, a conference-best. The Red Storm finished the season 10-3-4 overall and 4-3-1 in league action, earning the No. 3 seed in the Red Division and a bye to the quarterfinals. St. John's will visit Blue Division No. 2 seed Georgetown on Nov. 3 at 1 p.m. Last year, St. John's defeated Connecticut to win the BIG EAST Championship.
Cincinnati (6-8-4) tied with Villanova (11-5-2) for fourth in the Red Division at 3-3-2 in BIG EAST action. Villanova secured a spot in the BIG EAST Championship after defeating Pittsburgh 4-0 in the regular-season finale. The Wildcats defeated UC 1-0 on Oct. 13 at home to earn the head-to-head seeding tiebreaker.
Villanova will host Seton Hall in the first round of the tournament at 2 p.m. on Oct. 31. The two teams did not meet during the regular season.
Seton Hall is making its first trip to the postseason since 2007. The Pirates tied with Providence with a 2-6 record for fifth place in the Blue Division. Seton Hall defeated PC 2-1 on Oct. 3 to earn the head-to-head tiebreaker. The Pirates last made the tournament in 2007.
Marquette, ranked No. 5/3 nationally, tied for third in the Blue Division, going 5-2-1 in conference play. MU finished a historic regular season at 14-2-1 after posting a 12-game winning streak. The Golden Eagles will host Cincinnati on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET, with the winner playing at No. 1 Red seed Louisville.
The semifinals and final will be held at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J. for the third-straight year. The semifinals will be played on Nov. 9 at 5 and 7:30 and the final will be played on Nov. 11 at noon.