News Release
SECTIONAL SEMIFINAL SET: #7 NEW JERSEY CITY TO FACE #13 MONTCLAIR STATE FOR THIRD TIME THIS SEASON IN SWEET 16
INDIANAPOLIS, IN...The date and time for the NCAA Division III Men�s Soccer Tournament Sectional Semifinals and Finals have been announced, and for the third time this season�all in a period of 36 days�and 51st time since 1959, #7 ranked New Jersey City University will square off with New Jersey Athletic Conference rival and #13 Montclair State University in the Sweet 16. That sectional semifinal will be hosted by defending national champion Messiah College at Shoemaker Field in Grantham, PA on Saturday, November 17 at 5 p.m.
T
he winner of the NJCU-MSU contest will face the winner of Saturday�s 7:30 p.m. game between #4 Messiah (19-2-0), the three-time defending national champions, and #5 University of Rochester (15-2-2). The sectional final and a trip to the 2007 Division III Final Four will be contested on Sunday, November 18 at 6 p.m. Three of the top seven ranked teams in Division III will be in the sectional. MSU (18-2-1) is ranked #13 nationally by D3Kicks.com and #16 by the NSCAA.
NJCU (18-4-1), ranked No. 7 nationally by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, established a single-season record for victories and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second time in three years by virtue of a 4-1 rout of Hamilton College on November 11 in the NCAA Second Round.
NJCU is 3-1-1 overall in its history in the NCAA Tournament, and has outscored its five NCAA opponents, 13-6. NJCU is 10-1-1 in its last 12 games and 15-2-1 in its last 18 outings.
Playing in the NCAA Tournament for the second time in school history and the second time in three seasons, the Knights have now reached the Sweet 16 in each season they have been selected for the national tournament. In 2005, the only other year NJCU made an NCAA appearance, the Knights also played their Sweet 16 game against an NJAC rival at Messiah College, falling to The College of New Jersey, 3-2.
It will be the third meeting this season between NJCU, the 2007 New Jersey Athletic Conference regular season champions, and Montclair, the 2007 NJAC Tournament champions. NJCU won the regular season meeting, 3-0, on October 13, with MSU defeating the Knights in the NJAC Finals on November 3, 1-0. Both games were in Jersey City, NJ. MSU, which also reached the Sweet 16 last year, leads the all-time series, 36-9-5. It will be the first time the schools meet on a neutral field. The Red Hawks, making their eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament, is now 3-6-1 all-time.
The October 13 win for NJCU was historic and among the most significant victories in school history. The Knights defeated Montclair for the first time since 1986, snapping MSU�s 22-game unbeaten streak in the series. Montclair, which was ranked #10 entering the contest, had only allowed five goals in its first 15 games, before the Knights took a 1-0 halftime lead and posted two second half tallies en route to a 3-0 win that eventually propelled NJCU to its first-ever NJAC outright regular season title.
Junior center midfielder JONATHAN BILBAO (Carteret, NJ/St. Benedict�s Prep) scored the eventual game-winner, while twin brother EDISON BILBAO (Carteret, NJ/St. Benedict�s Prep) put the game out of reach with two second half goals. Freshman keeper ANDRE VIOLA (Clifton, NJ/St. Joseph�s Regional (Montvale)) had seven saves to post the crucial shutout.
In the NJAC Final, the only goal of the game was scored by Montclair freshman forward Aytac Malta (Lake Hiawatha, NJ/Parsippany) in the 57th minute. MSU junior keeper Nick Mele (Delran, NJ/Delran) posted only the second shutout of NJCU this season, making eight saves. Viola had three stops for NJCU.
If NJCU should advance, it would mark the first time in school history the Knights would reach the Elite 8. NJCU has never faced Messiah or Rochester.
�www.njcugothicknights.com�
Submitted 2007-11-12 20:53:45 by New Jersey City University Sports Information Department
