— by David Walsh
CARY N.C. – The Marshall men’s soccer team continues to add to its accomplishments in a crazy season headlined by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The No. 10-ranked Thundering Herd scored on seven of eight penalty kicks, while top seed Clemson converted six, allowing Marshall to prevail in the NCAA Tournament after the teams battled to a 1-1 draw in regulation and two 10-minute overtimes on Thursday at WakeMed Soccer Complex.
Marshall keeper Oliver Semmle denied a shot by Clemson’s Quinn McNeill in round eight. Up stepped the Herd’s Vitor Dias, who blasted a shot by Manion for the match-winner (7-6).
Marshall (11-2-2) moves on to the Elite Eight for the first time in program history with the next match at 1 p.m. Monday against Georgetown, the No. 3 seed and defending NCAA national champion from 2019. The Hoyas beat Penn State, 3-2. There was no tournament in 2020 due to COVID-19 and all spring sports being shut down.
Clemson, which won the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, finishes the season 14-3-3. The Tigers went 2-1 against Conference USA, starting the season with wins over South Carolina and UAB and then losing to Marshall.
Clemson made a change in goal at the start of overtime with Trevor Manion taking over for George Marks. Manion made a diving save on the Herd’s first PK, but Marshall converted the following seven.
Marshall took a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute when Max Schneider converted on a free kick following a Clemson foul. The Tigers responded in the 32nd minute when Callum Johnson netted a goal off a corner kick.
In the second 10-minute OT period, Marshall got four chances to win after a Clemson yellow card, but couldn’t convert. The Tigers earned their 14th corner kick in the 108th minute, but could not score.
James Brighton, Luis Felipe Salvador-Fernandez, Hamady Dion and Oskar Agren had the Clemson scores in the shootout. Mohamded Seye (round 4) had the miss.
The Herd’s Jan-Erik Leinhos had his shot stopped by Manion, a freshman, but Schneider, Nathan Dossantos, Vinicius Fernandes, Roberts, Joao Souza, Ryan Sirk and finally Dias converted in succession. The Dias tally came after the clutch save by Semmle.
This was the first meeting in soccer between the two teams.
The Coronavirus pandemic and all the protocols prompted the NCAA to have all 36 men’s teams consolidate play in Cary, North Carolina and surrounding areas. Being in one geographical location helps on travel and time needed to conduct the championships. It also allows for COVID-19 testing and setup.
The NCAA College Cups are May 17 for men and women at WakeMed Soccer Park. Current off-campus venues are Campbell, East Carolina, North Carolina Wilmington, UNC Greensboro and Wake Forest.