College Soccer

The Vermont Catamounts men’s soccer team pulled off an unthinkable run in the NCAA College Cup and defeated Marshall 2-1 in extra time on Monday in the championship game.

Vermont’s triumph marked the first time in history the university has won a national championship in any sport outside of skiing. The Catamounts’ run to the final saw them pull off remarkable upsets against the likes of No. 7 ranked Hofstra, No. 2 Pitt, No. 3 Denver and finally No. 13 Marshall in the final (who beat No. 1 Ohio State in the semifinal).

Stanford women’s soccer team survived a thrilling 1-1 (4-2) penalty shootout victory vs. Arkansas in the NCAA DI women’s soccer championship tournament on Sunday but had a bizarre moment at the end of the first half.

Stanford trailed in the first half of the Round of 16 matchup and thought they had scored an incredible equalizer in the stroke of halftime.

Junior forward Lumi Kostmayer took a beautiful shot from 25 yards out that beat the goalkeeper and nestled into the back of the net. There was only one problem: the clock had hit 0:00 milliseconds before the ball went in.

A play-by-play announcer had an all-time reaction on Wednesday when Stanford’s men’s soccer team defeated Notre Dame 3-2 with a goal from midfield and one second left on the clock.

The time in college soccer isn’t like the pros as the clock counts down and the game ends when time expires. This means that buzzer-beaters are possible on the pitch.

Wild video from the world of college soccer showed a vicious Rutgers UMass soccer fight as the two women’s teams came to blows on Sunday.

Both teams were playing just their third game of the season and tensions rose in the second half that saw two players exchange hands.

In the 55th minute Rutgers senior Gia Girman dove in for a hard challenge to halt a UMass move. UMass senior forward Ashley Lamond then tried to grab the ball to quickly restart play.

A tangle between Girman and Lamond escalated to a scuffle and then to a brawl.

The jump from college soccer to the professional level is a steep challenge few players are capable of surmounting. 23-year-old aspiring defensive talent Femi Awodesu is a prime example of a determined player looking to rise his way to the top.

Awodesu is a star defender from Philadelphia who excelled in his four years at Penn State. He dominated in his final seasons in 2022 and 2023 being named the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year and one of the best in the college landscape.

Believe it or not, the NCAA has been home to some of the brightest stars in the soccer world. Here, we take a look at NCAA soccer players in Europe, with a focus on college athletes who made the top flight.

Lionel Messi isn’t the only player capable of making defenders tackle each other in their effort to take the ball away from you.