WINTHROP, Mass. – Defending Great Northeast Athletic Conference champion Saint Joseph's College has clinched the men's soccer regular-season title and will serve as the top seed in the 2017 GNAC Tournament, which kicks off with quarterfinal action next Sunday, October 29. The Monks, who have yet to allow a goal this season and have outscored league opponents 42-0, will host eighth-seeded Suffolk University next weekend.
In the other quarterfinal contests, second-seeded Johnson & Wales University will host seventh-seeded Albertus Magnus College, third-seeded Norwich University will host sixth-seeded Emmanuel College, and fourth-seeded Mount Ida College will take on fifth-seeded Regis (Mass.). For the complete tournament schedule, please see below.
For SJC, which defeated Babson in last year's NCAA Division III Tournament, it marks the second consecutive year it has not lost a game in GNAC play. The Monks went 9-0-1 this fall – its only draw coming at the hands of Norwich – after going 8-0-1 in 2016. Third-seeded Norwich also tied the Monks last year, both in regular-season action and in the GNAC title game. Meanwhile, second-seeded JWU has limited league foes to just two goals in its 10 league tilts, while boasting an impressive 14-1-1 overall mark.
The GNAC Tournament Semifinals will take place on Wednesday, November 1 with no reseeding from the quarterfinal round. The championship game, which will have an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament at stake, is scheduled for Saturday, November 4 at the highest remaining seed.
Complete game time and location information will be announced in the coming days. Be sure to catch all of the action live on thegnac.tv or watch your favorite GNAC teams on one of our four custom digital streaming apps.
Sunday, October 29 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: #8 Suffolk at #1 Saint Joseph's of Maine - TBA
Game 2: #5 Regis (Mass.) at #4 Mount Ida - 1:00 PM
Game 3: #6 Emmanuel at #3 Norwich - 1:00 PM
Game 4: #7 Albertus Magnus at #2 Johnson & Wales - 1:00 PM
Wednesday, November 1 - Semifinals
Game 5: 4/5 winner vs 1/8 winner
Game 6: 3/6 winner vs 2/7 winner
Saturday, November 4 - Final
Game 7: Highest remaining seed
COURTESY OF GNAC SPORTS INFORMATION OFFICE
Founded in 1995, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 13 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Each year, the GNAC sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunities and community involvement.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
