Anderson Nabs Second SAC Men's Soccer Regular Season Title; Tournament Bracket Released

ROCK HILL, S.C. (theSAC.com) – In one of the most dramatic finishes to the season in conference history, the Anderson Trojans claimed the outright SAC Men's Soccer Regular Season Championship, the second in program history and the first since 2011.

The Trojans entered the night tied with Emory & Henry and did their part with a 4-0 win over Newberry to clinch at least a share of the league crown. Emory & Henry needed a win to clinch a share of the title and broke a scoreless draw with 24 seconds left against Lincoln Memorial. However, the Railsplitters netted the dramatic equalizer with two seconds left to end the game in a 1-1 draw.  

Anderson has been ranked in the top five in the nation most of the season after starting the with a streak of 12 straight unbeaten matches. In SAC play, Anderson outscored league opponents 17-6 to go 7-1-2 and earn 23 points.  

The best season in SAC program history for Emory & Henry saw the Wasps earn the 2-seed. After a slow start to the season where they dropped three straight, E&H flipped the script and finished the year with a 7-0-5 stretch. The hot streak gave the Wasps 21 points in the standings and a SAC record of 6-1-3. The Wasps haven't lost a game since Sept. 14, a 1-0 loss to Anderson.  

The Lincoln Memorial Railsplitters are the third seed. The draw with the Wasps gave them 20 points on the season and a 6-2-2 record. The points and record are identical to Lenoir-Rhyne who gets the number four seed based on the head-to-head win by LMU over LR back on Sept. 11. LMU went 4-0-1 in the final five SAC matches, including a win at Anderson, to earn the third spot.

LR defeated Catawba 2-1 tonight to earn the third-place tie but the No. 4 seed in the tournament. Since September, the Bears are unbeaten with a 6-0-3 record and secured the final home game in the quarterfinal round.

The Bears will take on fifth seed Wingate who made the biggest jump on the final day of the season. Wingate's 1-0 win over Coker vaulted them from ninth place all the way to the fifth seed with 12 points and a 3-4-3 record. The Bulldogs tied Coker in the standings but knocked the Cobras to the sixth seed with the head-to-head victory.

Carson-Newman, Mars Hill and Newberry all tied for seventh place in the league standings. However, due to tiebreaker scenarios, Carson-Newman secures the No. 7 seed thanks to the Eagles earning four points vs. MHU and Newberry in head-to-head contests. Mars Hill claims the No. 8 seed based on a second tiebreaker scenario. MHU and Newberry tied 0-0 on Sept. 12 and the next tiebreaker is record against the tournament's top seeds. Each team lost to No. 1 seed Anderson but Mars Hill tied No. 2 seed Emory & Henry while Newberry lost to the Wasps.

All tournament games will be broadcast on FloSports. The Quarterfinals will be on campus sites at the higher seed this weekend with the Semifinal and Championship taking place at the Sportsplex at Matthews in Matthews, N.C. The semis will be played on Friday, November 14 at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. and the championship will be on Sunday, November 16 at 1 p.m.

SAC Quarterfinals – Saturday/Sunday, November 8/9

Game 1: #1 Anderson vs. #8 Mars Hill – Anderson, S.C. –  Nov. 8 – 7:30 p.m.
Game 2: #2 Emory & Henry vs. #7 Carson-Newman – Emory, Va. – Nov. 9 – 6:30 p.m.
Game 3 : #3 Lincoln Memorial vs. #6 Coker – Harrogate, Tenn. – Nov. 9 - 3 p.m.
Game 4:  #4 Lenoir-Rhyne vs. #5 Wingate  – Hickory, N.C. – Nov. 8 – 7:30 p.m.

SAC Semifinals – Friday, November 14 – Matthews, N.C / Sportsplex at Matthews

Game 5: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 4 – 5 p.m.
Game 6: Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3 – 8 p.m.

SAC Championship – Sunday, November 16 – Matthews, N.C. / Sportsplex at Matthews

Game 7: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6 – 4 p.m