Minutemen Take on #11 Cavaliers in Men's Soccer Sweet 16

University of Massachusetts Men's Soccer Notes & Information
Matchup	Massachusetts at #11 Virginia (NCAA Tournament Third Round)
Date \| Time	Saturday, Nov. 30 \| 5:00 p.m. ET
Location	Klöckner Stadium \| Charlottesville, Va.
Twitter	@UMassMSoccer
Instagram	UMass Men's Soccer
Facebook	UMass Men's Soccer

AMHERST, Mass. – Massachusetts (12-3-5, 5-2-1 A10) is set for an NCAA Sweet 16 matchup with #11 Virginia (11-6-3, 3-3-2 ACC) Saturday evening in Charlottesville, Va. Kickoff is set for 5:00 p.m. with action streaming live on ESPN+. The winning team will advance to the Elite Eight and face the winner of #3 Denver/#14 Indiana.

Last Time Out
The Minutemen overcame top-ranked competition on Sunday, battling to a 1-0 victory over #6 Penn in the second round on the road. Alec Hughes fired the game-winning strike for Massachusetts, netting a right-footed volley off a chest trap to score the lone goal of the contest. The performance marked Hughes' 51st career goal in five seasons with UMass and his 16th of the season. Alex Geczy recorded his 9^th clean sheet of the year, ranking second in program history for most shutouts in a single season. UMass enters its second NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance in program history.

Hughes Makes History
Alec Hughes broke the record for All-Time goals scored in program history, passing Jeff Deren's ('03) record of 48, scoring a brace on the road against St. Bonaventure on Nov. 2. Hughes has netted 16 goals on the season and tallied one assist, good for 33 total points on the 2024 campaign and 51 goals over his five-year career. He currently trails recent Massachusetts Athletics Hall of Famer Jeff Deren on total points in program history (113), with Hughes having 110 points. The Glastonbury, Conn. native made Atlantic 10 history this season, becoming the first player in conference history to earn A-10 Offensive Player of the Year three years in a row.

Deren ('99-'03) was announced as an inductee into the Hall of Fame this past August, helping the Minutemen to Atlantic 10 regular season championships in 2000 and 2002 while also leading UMass to the 2001 Atlantic 10 Tournament championship and an appearance in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Deren was twice named an All-American (2001, 2002), Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Year (2001, 2002) and an All-New England honoree (2001, 2002).

Masterclass Defending
Alex Geczy tallied his 9th clean sheet of the season in Sunday's victory over #6 Penn, saving seven shots on the evening. The Minutemen's back line has elevated its play to an even higher level in the month of November, allowing just two goals in four games.

A Look at the Squad
UMass returns 16 players from last year's roster including Hughes and fellow graduate student Mike Willis.

Additionally, the Minutemen welcome eight newcomers featuring Dean Linden (Fr.), Sean Fernandez-Davila (Fr.), Joseph Bianco (Jr.), Johan Feilscher (Gr.), Kyle Stenzel (Gr.), Chris Giglio (Gr.), Layton Purchase (Gr.), and Oliver Akintade (Gr.).

Scouting Virginia
UMass meets Virginia for the first time in program history. The Cavaliers are coming off a 2-1 victory over West Virginia in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

UVA posted an 11-6-3 record in 2024 thus far, going 3-3-2 in ACC play. Virginia advanced to the ACC Championship Semifinals, falling to Wake Forest in a 5-1 decision. The Cavaliers earned the 11^th seed in the NCAA Tournament selection, securing a first-round bye.

Scoreboard

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Players Mentioned

Oliver Akintade

Joseph Bianco

Johan Feilscher

Sean Fernandez-Davila

Alex Geczy

Chris Giglio

Alec Hughes

Dean Linden

Layton Purchase

Kyle Stenzel

Mike Willis

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics