Nov. 6, 2017
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Following the best season in over a decade, the Vanderbilt soccer team’s season will continue as they received a bid to the 2017 NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2006.
The Commodores will head to Columbus, Ohio and face Ohio State in the first round on Friday, November 10 at 5pm CT. Vanderbilt is one of a record nine SEC teams to receive a bid to the tournament.
“I am thrilled for everyone associated with the program, including the alumni who have all been a part of bringing the program to where it is today,” said head coach Darren Ambrose. “I am ecstatic for our seniors who have really been at the forefront of turning this program around. We are excited for the matchup and it is nice to see Vanderbilt’s name called on a national level.”
The 2017 season got off to a slow start after injuries plagued the Commodores over the first few weeks. Following the Music City Invitational in the first weekend of September, the Dores were sitting with a 3-3 record.
Once the Dores started to get healthy, the wins started to pile up. They went on a seven-game unbeaten streak after the first week of September.
Vanderbilt ended this season on a 9-3-2 run with all three losses coming to top-15 teams. They had ranked wins over No. 11 Tennessee at home and beat No. 19 Tennessee in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament.
The Dores finished the regular season with an 11-6-1 record and went 6-3-1 in SEC play. Vanderbilt finished fourth in the conference following a 2-1 win over Auburn on senior night. It was their best finish in league play since they got rid of divisions during the 2009 season.
The Dores earned their second straight bye in the SEC Tournament and defeated Tennessee 1-0 to advance to the semifinals for the first time since 2005. In the semifinals, the Commodores and Razorbacks were tied 1-1 after 110 minutes of play so they went to penalty kicks to decide who would advance to the finals. Arkansas defeated the Commodores 4-2 in PK’s to advance to their second-straight SEC Tournament final.
This will be Vanderbilt’s eighth appearance all-time in the NCAA Tournament. The Commodores hold a 4-7 all-time record in the tournament and have advanced to the second four times in school history.
Friday’s match with Ohio State will start at 5 pm CT at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium on OSU’s campus. Fans can purchase tickets via the link above starting on Wednesday at 9 am CT. It is $8 for adults and $5 for seniors/children. You can also purchase tickets at the gate on Friday.
Live stream information will be released at a later date.
