Nov. 10, 2003

Truman Men's Soccer Will Host the NCAA Central Regional

The 2003 NCAA Division II men's soccer tournament field was announced today and Truman earned the number one seed in the Central region and will host this week's regional tournament. It is the seventh NCAA tournament bid for the Bulldogs, the first since 1999.

Southern Illinois-Edwardsville and Rockhurst will round out the regional field. Those two teams will play on Thursday at 1:00 p.m. at the Truman Soccer Park. The winner will then face Truman on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. for the regional championship. Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, seeded second in the region, comes into the tournament with a 16-3-0 record and is currently No. 10 in the national ranking. Rockhurst, the third seed, is 10-8-2 on the year and currently ranked No. 24 in the country.

The Bulldogs are having their best season in the program's history, going into the playoffs with a 19-0-0 record and a No. 2 national ranking. Truman has been led by one of the top defenses in NCAA Division II history, with a 0.21 goals against average and 16 shutouts.

Truman has defeated both the Cougars and Hawks earlier this year. In the season-opener, the Bulldogs won a 1-0 decision over Southern Illinois-Edwardsville in a neutral site game played in Quincy. Truman defeated Rockhurt on the road by a 2-0 score. Southern Illinois-Edwardsville defeated Rockhurst earlier this year by a 4-0 score.

The Bulldogs last postseason came in 1999 when they lost a 3-2 game to IU/PU-Ft. Wayne in Kirksville in the first-round. Truman is 3-6 all-time in the NCAA tournament, winning two of those matches in 1997 when they advanced to the final four. Truman also beat Quincy (Ill.) in a first-round game in 1998, before lost to Mercyhurst (Pa.) in the quarterfinals. The program made their first NCAA tournament in 1990, losing to Oakland City (Mich.) 2-1 in the first-round. The Bulldogs also qualified in 1992 and 1995 and played first-round games.

Ticket prices for the NCAA regional will be $5 for adults and $2 for students and children under the age of 12.

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