 |
| Junior Brandon Allen returns for Georgetown |
From our friends at Georgetown Athletics...
<Originally posted on May 24, 2014>
The Georgetown University men's soccer program released a challenging slate for 2014 on Wednesday. The Hoyas will face some of the best teams in the nation as well as challenging BIG EAST Conference opponents.
"We have a schedule that is easy to get excited about starting with our first-ever trips to Creighton and Butler as conference opponents," said Georgetown Head Coach Brian Wiese. "Every single game on the schedule will demand a good performance out of us, and that's how we want it to be."
Last season, the Hoyas finished the season 14-5-2 winning a share of the BIG EAST Regular Season Championship for the third time in four years. Georgetown went to the BIG EAST Championship Semifinal at PPL Park where the Hoyas tied fourth-seeded Providence in double overtime, 0-0, but failed to advance in penalty kicks. Along the way, the Hoyas had impressive milestones including setting the program record for season shutouts with 14. The squad advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
In 20 total games in 2014, including two exhibitions, the Hoyas will face 13 2013 NCAA Tournament qualifiers, including three of the four College Cup participants, both teams in the national championship game and five ranked among the top 16 seeded squads.
The Blue & Gray will play nine home games including four against conference opponents. The format of the league has each team meeting once. GU will host Xavier on October 29 and NCAA qualifiers Marquette (Oct. 4), Providence (Oct. 15) and St. John's (Nov. 1). GU battled to a scoreless tie with Providence in the semifinals of the 2013 BIG EAST Championship.
The Hoyas' BIG EAST road schedule includes Butler (Sept. 27), DePaul (Oct. 11), Seton Hall (Oct. 18) and Villanova (Nov. 7). Georgetown will also travel to 2013 NCAA Tournament qualifier Creighton on Oct. 25.
Georgetown will open the season with a pair of road exhibition games against Penn State University and the University of Virginia on August 17 and 23. Both appeared in last year's NCAA Tournament, and UVA advanced to the College Cup.
The non-conference schedule begins with a weekend in Bloomington, Ind. The Hoyas will face NCAA qualifier Indiana University on August 29, and reigning national champion University of Notre Dame on August 31.
GU will open play at Shaw Field on September 5, playing host to Harvard University. This begins a four-game homestand which features three 2013 NCAA Tournament teams including the University of Wisconsin (Sept. 7), Virginia Commonwealth University (Sept. 11) and the University of California Irvine (Sept. 14).
The Hoyas will travel to Princeton on Sept. 17 and then host NCAA squad the College of William & Mary on Sept. 21.
Georgetown will close out non-conference play in a huge matchup against the University of Maryland on Sept. 30 in College Park, Md. The Terps appeared in last year's national championship game. It will be the first meeting for the teams since the Hoyas advanced in penalty kicks over UMD in the 2012 College Cup semifinal.
The BIG EAST Championship will once again be held at PPL Park in Philadelphia, Pa., on November 14 and 16. The park is home to Major League Soccer's Philadelphia Union. The quarterfinals will be played on campus sites on Nov. 11 with the final four squads advancing to PPL Park.
Georgetown opens training in mid-August. The Hoyas lost six seniors to graduation, including a pair of MLS Draft picks, but return a talented core and bring in a highly-ranked freshman class.
Here's a rundown of this year's schedule...
Aug. 17 at Penn State, 7:00 PM
Aug. 23 at Virginia, 1:00 PM
Aug. 29 at Indiana, 8:00 PM
Aug. 31 vs. Notre Dame, 11:30 AM
Sep. 5 vs. Harvard, 4:00 PM
Sep. 7 vs. Wisconsin, 1:00 PM
Sep. 11 vs. VCU, 4:00 PM
Sep. 14 vs. UC Irvine, 1:00 PM
Sep. 17 at Princeton, 7:00 PM
Sep. 21 vs. William & Mary, 4:00 PM
Sep. 27 at Butler, 5:30 PM
Sep. 30 at Maryland, 7:00 PM
Oct. 4 vs. Marquette, 1:00 PM
Oct. 11 at DePaul, 1:00 PM
Oct. 15 vs. Providence, 3:00 PM
Oct. 18 at Seton Hall, 1:00 PM
Oct. 25 at Creighton, 8:00 PM
Oct. 29 vs. Xavier, 2:00 PM
Nov. 1 vs. St. John's, 1:00 PM
Nov. 7 at Villanova, 2:00 PM
Home game in BOLD
