BALTIMORE – Loyola University Maryland's top players delivered in the key moments of Saturday's Patriot League Championship, and as a result the Greyhounds are heading back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009.
Justin Ingram scored the game-winning goal on an 83rd minute free kick, and
Chase Vosvick made a diving save in the closing seconds to seal a 2-1 victory over American at Ridley Athletic Complex. After four-straight regular season titles and a first-place finish in the South division last spring, Loyola (10-6-3) claims the program's first postseason championship since joining the conference in 2013.
"It's a special feeling," head coach
Steve Nichols said. "This is an incredible program with a lot of history, and we're excited to be back in the NCAA tournament where we belong. This might not be the most talented team we've had during these past five years, but I think it has the most character. It's icing on the cake for all of our grad students who wanted to come back for one last chance at a title."
Ingram's go-ahead strike came on a free kick from five yards outside the box, as he sent an effort past the wall and into the right-hand corner. The Eagles (9-5-4) had one last attempt to equalize after a long throw-in found Evan Schweickert alone in the box with under five seconds remaining. Vosvick, though, was up to the task, as he dove to his right to prevent Schweickert's low shot from reaching the corner while clinching Loyola's ninth appearance in the NCAA Division I tournament.
Kelan Swales opened up the scoring for the Greyhounds in the 15th minute, as he gained possession off an Ingram corner kick and blasted his team-leading eighth goal into the left side. Ingram, who recorded his fifth game with 3+ points this season, tallied his Patriot League-leading 10th assist on the play.
"Big players make big plays when it matters most," Nichols said. "Kelan has been a huge player for us all year, Justin showed again why he's one of the top players in the country and Chase proved why he's one of the best goalkeepers this program has ever seen. After all this team has been through the last few years, it's poetic justice that he was able to make that save in the final seconds."
Jack Green set up David Coly for American's lone goal of the afternoon in the 32nd minute. Coly's strike, his eighth of the season, ended Loyola's longest shutout streak in 10 years at 420:03 minutes. The Greyhounds posted clean sheets in their final three regular season games, and they played to a scoreless draw against Army West Point in the semifinal round before advancing on penalties.
Vosvick, who had three saves overall in the victory, was announced as the Patriot League Tournament MVP after the game. He was joined on the All-Tournament Team by Ingram, Swales and defender
Jordy Luchies.
The Selection Show for this year's NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament will be streamed live on NCAA.com at 1 p.m. on Monday. The top 16 seeded teams will receive byes into the second round on Sunday, Nov. 21, while the remaining 32 teams will play in first round matchups next Thursday.
