The road to Cary runs through Princeton.
No. 3 men’s soccer (15–1–2 overall, 9–0 Ivy) piled into the football team room early Monday afternoon, waiting intently to hear their NCAA Tournament draw. Like last season, the Tigers owned the Ivy League’s automatic bid. However, this year the team expected a high seed, possibly even No. 1.
Ranked in the top ten since early October, the Orange and Black were awarded the third seed in the 48-team tournament, behind only Vermont and Virginia.
“We were pumped to see when our name came out as the three seed,” senior center back Guiliano Fravolini Whitchurch told The Daily Princetonian. “A little bit disappointed we didn’t get a higher seed, but at the same time being the third seed in the country is obviously a huge accomplishment.”
A huge accomplishment indeed. The third seed is the highest seed for an Ivy League ever, surpassing the 2024 Penn Quakers who were the sixth seed. The Tigers also received a bye into the second round for the first time since 2001.
The Tigers had a strong argument to be ranked even higher by the Selection Committee, after sitting atop the RPI for much of the year. They have not dropped a game since September and thoroughly dominated the Ivy League.
Virginia, who came in as the second seed, lost 1–0 to No. 25 Southern Methodist University on Sunday in the ACC Championship game. The Cavaliers faced tougher competition throughout the season in the ACC but tied or lost more games than Princeton.
The defending champion Vermont Catamounts, undefeated on the season, played both Harvard and Dartmouth this year, drawing both. The Tigers, on the other hand, beat the Crimson twice and the Mean Green once.
The Catamounts did fare better than the Orange and Black against other shared opponents. They beat 11th-seeded Bryant twice, who the Tigers fought to a 0–0 tie in October, and Hofstra — the only team to beat the Tigers this year.
Princeton will play the winner of Duke and Fairleigh Dickinson, who will face off at 1 p.m. on Thursday in Durham, N.C. Fairleigh Dickinson won the Northeast Conference’s automatic bid with a victory over Saint Francis, and Duke earned an at-large bid.
“When you have a first round bye, regardless of who you’re going to play, it’s going to be a good team that’s already won a tournament game,” Fravolini Whitchurch told the ‘Prince.’
Familiar opponents loom near in the bracket. With a win, the Tigers could face off with the 14th-seeded Akron Zips, who sent the Tigers home in the first round of the tournament last year.
Even further down the line, the Orange and Black may have a rematch with Bryant in the Elite Eight. The sixth-seeded Indiana Hoosiers rounds out the region.
As the highest seed in their quarter of the draw, the Tigers will host every game on Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium up until the Final Four if they keep winning. The last four teams left will travel to Cary, N.C. for the semifinal and final matches.
“To play here at Roberts is a special time because of how great the stadium is,” senior forward Danny Ittycheria said to the ‘Prince.’ “I think it’s one of the best stadiums in college soccer. So to be able to play here and to have people that support you and want you to do really well is awesome, and really just fuels us even more.”
Ittycheria called Sunday’s Ivy League Championship win over Cornell “the most packed I’ve ever seen Roberts.”
“It’s crazy now, because two years ago, that wasn’t the case,” he added.
The team will look to win the program’s first NCAA Tournament game since 1993 on Sunday at 4 p.m. In an already historic year, the Tigers are taking one game at a time.
“Throughout the season, we’ve really risen to the occasion, no matter the opponent,” junior goalkeeper Andrew Samuels said to the ‘Prince.’ “When Sunday rolls along, whoever it might be, Duke or FDU, we’re gonna go out with the same mentality and try to destroy them.”
Harrison Blank is a head Sports editor at the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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