Three ACC men’s soccer teams play in NCAA quarterfinals Monday

Greensboro, NC – The 2020 NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship resumes Monday with the quarterfinals at the WakeMed Soccer Park complex in Cary, North Carolina. Three ACC teams remain alive as they look to lock up berths in the NCAA College Cup in Cary next weekend.

Second-seeded Pitt plays No. 7 seed Washington at 1 p.m. Monday, while No. 5 seed Wake Forest battles North Carolina at 5 p.m. The Wake Forest-North Carolina matchup guarantees the ACC will have at least one team in the NCAA College Cup for the 19th time in the last 20 years.

Results/Upcoming Schedule

Sunday, May 2 Virginia Tech 2, Oregon State 1 (OT)  Bryan Park, Greensboro, N.C. No. 1 Clemson 2, American 1  Winston-Salem, N.C. North Carolina 1, Charlotte 1 (2OT; 4-1 PK)  WakeMed Soccer Park Field No. 2, Cary, N.C. No. 2 Pitt 6, Monmouth 1  Bryan Park, Greensboro, N.C. No. 5 Wake Forest 3, Coastal Carolina 2  Winston-Salem, N.C.

Thursday, May 6 – Round of 16 (Cary, N.C.) No. 2 Pitt 4, UCF 0 North Carolina 1, No. 4 Stanford 0 No. 5 Wake Forest 2, Kentucky 1 Marshall 1, No. 1 Clemson 1 (MU 7-6 PK) No. 6 Seton Hall 2, Virginia Tech 2 (SHU 7-6 PK)

Monday, May 10 – Quarterfinals (Cary, N.C.) No. 2 Pitt vs. No. 7 Washington | 1 p.m. No. 5 Wake Forest vs. North Carolina | 5 p.m.

Friday, May 14 NCAA College Cup Semifinals WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, N.C.

Monday, May 17 NCAA College Cup Championship WakeMed Soccer Park, Cary, N.C.

Noting ACC Men’s Soccer

• Five ACC teams earned bids to the 2020 NCAA Division I Men’s Soccer Championship and three advanced to the Round of 16. Both numbers are the most by any conference in this tournament.

• Since 2013, 24 ACC teams have advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals, comprising 37.5 percent of the teams in that span (64 total teams).

• Pitt owns a school-record 15 wins this season and is making its first appearance in the NCAA quarters. • Clemson earned the league’s automatic NCAA bid by virtue of its ACC championship and claimed the top seed in the NCAA Tournament. Pitt (2) and Wake Forest (5) also earned seeds.

• It marks the eighth straight year that the ACC has placed the most teams in the tournament. It is the 20th consecutive year that at least five league teams have earned a bid.

• ACC teams have captured 17 NCAA men’s soccer titles, including seven of the last 15. The ACC’s streak of 17 straight years with at least one conference team in the NCAA Men’s College Cup was snapped in 2018.

• Six current ACC programs have won at least one national championship, the most of any conference. Ten different league programs have reached the College Cup (Pitt is looking to become the 11th). Fifty-seven ACC teams have reached the College Cup all-time.

• Virginia has won seven NCAA men’s soccer championships, which is third most all-time. Clemson and UNC own two titles, while Duke, Notre Dame and Wake Forest also have won championships.

• ACC teams hold five spots in the latest United Soccer Coaches national rankings: Clemson (1), Pitt (3), Wake Forest (4) and North Carolina (16). 

• Pitt was ranked No. 1 nationally for seven weeks. The Panthers earned their first-ever No. 1 national ranking earlier this season. Prior to this season, Pitt’s highest ranking was No. 7 on Oct. 9, 2000.

• Clemson earned its 15th ACC Championship in November, including its fourth tournament title and first since 2014.  • 25 ACC players were selected in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft, including 12 in the first round. Both totals broke the ACC’s own records for a conference. The ACC had each of the top five picks.

• Entering the season, six ACC head coaches ranked among the top 35 in NCAA Division I in winning percentage by active head coaches: UNC’s Carlos Somoano (2nd, .738), Virginia’s George Gelnovatch (ninth, .696), Wake Forest’s Bobby Muuss (16th, .669), Pitt’s Jay Vidovich (26th, .633), Notre Dame’s Chad Riley (31st, .618) and NC State’s George Kiefer (32nd, .617).