Chippewa Valley Times

The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's soccer team is set to host an NCAA Tournament regional for the first time. The announcement came after the NCAA revealed the 2024 tournament field on Monday. The Blugolds will compete against Lake Forest College, Hope College, and DePauw University at Simpson Field in Eau Claire on November 15-16.

"It's truly a blessing to be part of this program, and we've taken steps every single year," senior forward Nathan Donovan stated. "In year four now, we've only just kept climbing and (this is) just one more step in the process for our ultimate goal."

The tournament schedule includes UW-Eau Claire facing Lake Forest in the opening game on Friday, November 15 at 1 p.m., followed by Hope versus DePauw at 3:30 p.m. The winners will meet in the regional finals on Saturday, November 16 at 1 p.m.

"I think it'll be a very entertaining matchup for us," midfielder Jacob Sampson commented. "We will have to work really hard. Whatever differences we may have, we'll go through all the steps we need through practice and through the scout and everything to be ready for the matchup ahead."

This marks UW-Eau Claire's third appearance in the NCAA Tournament. They reached the regional finals in 2022 and sectional semifinals in 2023. This season, they won both the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles.

Three teams participating in this regional secured their conference tournaments: UW-Eau Claire (WIAC), DePauw (NCAC), and Lake Forest (MWC).

The victor of this weekend's games will move forward to the sectional round of the NCAA Tournament at a location yet to be announced.

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