Unlike the Women’s College Cup that featured a No. 1 seed, two No. 2 seeds and a No. 3 seed, the highest rated seed in the men’s semifinal is No. 15 NC State. Furman slides in right behind as a No. 16 seed, with Washington and Saint Louis as unseeded.
This mean there were some serious upsets along the way for these four teams to find themselves two wins away from a national championship. Let’s break down how Furman and Washington found themselves in Cary.
Furman (16-1-5)
The Paladins are competing in their first Men’s College Cup in program history after knocking off No. 8 Portland in the quarterfinals behind a 75th minute long-distance strike from Braden Dunham. Dunham dribbled up just past midfield and launched a left-footed beam into the top-right corner from almost 40 yards out. It caught the Portland keeper completely off guard for a 1-0 victory.
But the real drama for Furman came in the third round as Hofstra, coming off an upset of No. 1 seed Vermont, took the Paladins to the brink of elimination. The game was knotted 1-1 at half, but back-to-back goals in the 76th and 79th minute put Furman up comfortably 3-1 with 10 minutes to play — at least one would think. The Pride took no time responding, notching their own back-to-back goals even quicker than the Paladins, with the first in the 80th minute and the next in the 81st. Hofstra’s two goals were just 68 seconds apart.
The third round showdown ended in a 5-4 advantage in penalties for Furman as it squeezed past Hofstra in one of the more entertaining matches of the whole tournament.
Washington (14-6-2)
The Huskies are making their second Men’s College Cup appearance, the first coming in 2021 when they lost 2-0 in the national championship to Clemson.
Washington advanced to Cary with wins over No. 4 Maryland and No. 5 SMU, but more close calls came in the opening round against Oregon State and the third round against No. 12 Stanford.
In the first round, the Huskies found themselves in an early 1-0 hole after the Beavers scored in the third minute. But Washington equalized it early into the second half before the old Pac-12 rivals traded goals in the final 15 minutes to force overtime. And in 2OT, Richie Aman found the back of the net for the Huskies in the 104th minute, avoiding penalties and advancing UW.
In the third round, it looked as though Washington was headed for more overtime drama before the Huskies put together a late attack as Zach Ramsey crossed it to Charlie Kosakoff in the box for a header goal in the 88th minute.
The Huskies found their most comfortable win in the quarterfinals, taking down No. 4 Maryland 3-1 as they returned to the Men’s College Cup for the second time in five years.
