PENSACOLA, Fla.- In an excitement and adrenaline fueled week, the Cal Poly Pomona men's soccer team is in Pensacola for the Semifinal round of the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championships.
The Broncos' semifinal matchup will take place against No. 5 Rockhurst University, a team based in Kansas City, Mo. and champion of the Midwest Region. The Hawks carry an overall tally of 18-1-3 into the Final Four matchup after advancing due to a penalty shots victory over Fort Hays State last month.
Donning the increasingly recognizable Green and Gold, the Broncos will head into the matchup with a 16-2-3 season tally and the West Region title under their belts. After topping Cal State Dominguez Hills in the West Region Title game, the Broncos went on to defeat the Orediggers of Colorado School of Mines. The win came off of an
Aaron Macedo header after a beautiful pass from
Mathew Perez in overtime.
CPP and Rockhurst have never faced each other in either program's history, so neither team has a series advantage heading into Thursday's contest. The game will take place at 8 p.m. local time (6 p.m. Pacific) at the Ashton Brosnaham Sports Complex in Pensacola.
The Broncos head into the matchup with four members of its squad recently earning All-West Region accolades. Perez was named to the Second Team, while
Alexander Turkson,
Justyn Peeples, and
Christian Gonzalez Diaz were named to the First Team.
With his First Team nod, Gonzalez Diaz was also named the West Region Player of the Year. The Mission Viejo native led the Broncos and the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) with 13 goals. His goals, added to five assists, gave the forward 31 points this season.
On the other side of the bracket and with the first men's semifinal game of the day on Thursday is Charleston and Pfeiffer. The two squads hail from the Atlantic and Southeast Region, respectively. Charleston, who enters the matchup with a record of 20-2-0 is based in West Virginia. Playing out of Misenheimer, NC is the Falcons of Pfeiffer. The Falcons enter the game with a perfect record thus far this season at 23-0-0.
The winner of the semifinal games will continue on to play the winner of the other semifinal game for the title of National Champion on Saturday at 3 p.m. local time (1 p.m. Pacific). All four teams in the Final Four are nationally ranked on the NSCAA Coaches rankings as of the association's Nov. 10 poll.
Undefeated Pfeiffer was the No. 1 ranked team in the country after the latest NSCAA poll. Rockhurst rolled in at No. 5, Charleston clocked in at no. 6, and the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos rounded out the Final Four competitors at the No. 17 spot.
Cal Poly Pomona will host a viewing party for the event in the Bronco Student Center on Thursday as the game begins at 6 p.m.
