The Indiana men’s soccer team begins its quest for a ninth national title when it hosts Lipscomb in the opening round of the NCAA tournament Thursday at 6 p.m.
Lipscomb (10-3-4) earned a spot in the tournament by winning the Atlantic Sun Conference for the third straight year.
It’s the 37 th straight appearance in the tournament for the Hoosiers, and the 48 th overall.
The Hoosiers earned an automatic berth in the postseason by beating Penn State, 1-0, in the Big Ten tournament championship game Sunday.
It was the 16 th conference tournament title for the Hoosiers, who also won the regular season title for an 18 th time. It’s the 12 th time Indiana has won both the Big Ten regular and postseason titles.
The Hoosiers started slow this season. At the halfway point, they were just 3-3-4. But they went on to win nine of their final 10 games, including three games in the Big Ten tournament.
The IU-Lipscomb winner will play at 10th-seed Wake Forest (11-2-5).
Indiana was the only Big Ten team to make the field of 48. Marshall is the No. 1 overall seed for the tournament, followed by Notre Dame, North Carolina and Georgetown. The College Cup will be Dec. 8-11 in Louisville.
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