MSOC Clinches Second Consecutive Postseason Bid

MILWAUKEE – The Marquette University men's soccer team will take part in the BIG EAST tournament for the second straight season, earning the sixth and final spot in the six-team bracket.

The Golden Eagles will take on the third-seeded Providence Friars on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 11 a.m. CT in the tournament quarterfinals at Anderson Field in Providence, Rhode Island. Television coverage will be had by the BIG EAST Digital Network.

The two teams last played on Oct. 12 when the Friars came away with a 2-0 home victory after MU had to play a man down for the final 80 minutes of the game. Sophomore defender Manuel Cukaj received a red card for denying a goal scoring opportunity in the 10^th minute.

MU came into today in a tie with Xavier for seventh place in the conference standings. The Golden Eagles need to win their game against DePaul and have either Butler lose/draw against Xavier or Seton Hall to do the same against Villanova.

Butler defeated Xavier, 2-1, eliminating the Musketeers from postseason contention and clinching the No. 5 seed in the conference tournament. Seton Hall, who defeated MU 2-1 on Saturday night, dropped a 1-0 decision at home to Villanova. The Pirates loss allowed MU to clinch its second BIG EAST tournament berth in as many seasons.

Last season, head coach Louis Bennett led MU to a BIG EAST tournament runner-up finish as the Golden Eagles fell one game short of clinching the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. MU made a thrilling postseason push, defeating both Xavier (quarterfinals) and No. 17 Creighton (semifinals) in PK's before falling in the championship to No. 19 Georgetown.

Keep up with the Marquette men's soccer program through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteSoccer) and Instagram (@MarquetteSoccer) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteSoccer).

Players Mentioned

Manuel Cukaj

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