By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
INDIANAPOLIS – After a two-year absence, Fort Hays State is back in the NCAA Division II Men’s Soccer Tournament. The Tigers are making their 10thappearance in the national tournament in just the program’s 14th year of existence. The Tigers are the No. 10 seed in Super Region 3 and will take on No. 7 seed Davenport (Mich.) in the opening round in Lebanon, Ill. on Friday (Nov. 22). The Tigers enter the national tournament with a record of 12-3-4.
The Fort Hays State vs. Davenport opening round match will be hosted by McKendree University, which earned the No. 2 seed in the Super Regional. The Bearcats have an opening round bye and will play the winner of the FHSU/Davenport matchup on Sunday (Nov. 24). Both contests in Lebanon will be played at Leemon Field on the campus of McKendree University.
INTERACTIVE TOURNAMENT BRACKET
Fort Hays State will be one of three teams from the GAC/MIAA playing in the national tournament. Southern Nazarene (No. 8) and Rogers State (No. 9) will meet each other in the opening round on the other side of the bracket in Saginaw, Mich., where No. 1 seed Saginaw Valley State awaits the winner of that match. Southern Nazarene and Rogers State each received at-large berths into the national tournament.
The other second-round matchup on Fort Hays State’s side of the 10-team Super Regional bracket will be No. 3 seed Maryville (Mo.) playing host to No. 6 seed Findlay (Ohio). On the other side of the Super Regional bracket, No. 4 seed Tiffin will play host to No. 5 seed Lewis.
The FHSU Men’s Soccer program has put together an impressive run in its young history. After falling just short of making the NCAA Tournament in 2011, the program’s first year of existence, the Tigers went on a run of making the NCAA Tournament every season from 2012 to 2021 (9 seasons). They had the longest consecutive streak of tournaments made in the nation until the streak came to an end in 2022. The Tigers have won at least 11 matches in 11 of the 14 years of the program’s existence. (11 was unattainable in the COVID shortened 2020-21 season).
If the Tigers advance past the first weekend of play in the national tournament, they would advance to the Round of 16 which is slated for either December 2 or 3. Site of the Round of 16 and national quarterfinal matches will be determined by results within the Super Region bracket this weekend.