The NCAA College Cup Sweet 16 matches took place this past weekend with two players that hold ties to the club's Player Development system still in contention for a national championship.
Michigan State
Chicago Fire PDL alum and Spartan senior forward Adam Montague, helped MSU come back from a two-goal second half deficit in Sunday’s shootout victory over Washington in East Lansing, Mich. (HIGHLIGHTS)
The Huskies James Moberg and Steven Wright put the visitors up 2-0 in the 66th and 73rd minutes respectively but a Washington own goal minutes later put the Spartans back in the match.
That set the stage for MSU’s 88th minute equalizer as Montague’s flick on header from the top of the area found teammate Tim Kreutz who finished from close-range to send the match to extra time.
Scoreless in overtime, Montague would convert the Spartans’ third kick in the shootout as MSU downed Washington 4-3 on penalties to advance to the quarterfinals.
Montague and Michigan State will host Providence on Friday, Dec. 5 at 11:00am CST.
North Carolina
Senior forward and Fire Academy alum Tyler Engel went 73 minutes as teammate Rob Lovejoy’s brace helped North Carolina to a 2-1 win at Clemson Sunday afternoon. (HIGHLIGHTS)
Now just a game away from the 2014 College Cup in Cary, N.C., Engel and North Carolina will travel cross-country to face #2 UCLA Saturday, Dec. 6 at 7:00pm CST.
Notre Dame
Freshman forward Jeff Farina played 59 minutes for the Fighting Irish in a 1-0 home loss to Virginia that ended the number one ranked Notre Dame’s championship hopes Sunday.
Farina finishes his freshman season with appearances in all 21 games, two goals, and seven assists as the Irish close out 2014 at 12-5-4.
Louisville
The #13 ranked Cardinals fell 1-0 to UMBC on Sunday, Nov. 30 to end their 2014 College Cup drive.
Senior defender Daniel Keller went the 90 minutes in his final game, while senior forward Will Vitalis tallied 39 minutes. Both Fire PDL alums played in all 22 matches for the Cardinals this year as Keller finished with one goal and two assists, while Vitalis finished with two goals and four assists
