UCF upsets Marshall 3-1 to take Sun Belt men's soccer championship
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — The Marshall Thundering Herd men's soccer team hosted the University of Central Florida Knights on Sunday for a shot at the Sun Belt championship.
Upset-minded UCF came out swinging and eventually held on for a huge win over Marshall by a score of 3-1, taking home their first title since joining the Sun Belt Conference in men's soccer in 2023.
The win also earns UCF the Sun Belt's automatic bid into the NCAA men's soccer tournament.
The Knights struck early with a goal in the 17th minute from Frederic Benedix, his first of the entire season. That would end up being the only goal from either team in the first half.
Lilian Ricol expanded UCF's lead early in the second half with a goal in the 51st minute, before tacking on a third goal in the 65th minute.
Marshall ate into the lead by one with a Carl Romberg goal in the 73rd minute, but it was too little too late, falling to the Knights and now having to rely on an at-large bid to qualify for the 48-team NCAA tournament.
The Thundering Herd entered the game as the No. 12 team in the nation and was seeded third in the Sun Belt tournament, having bested sixth-seed Georgia State and upsetting second-seed No. 17 West Virginia to get to the conference championship game.
UCF entered the game unranked nationally and seeded fifth in the conference tournament. The Knights pulled off a remarkable three upsets to win the title, beating fourth-seeded Georgia Southern and top-seeded No. 19 Kentucky before winning the Sun Belt title over third-seeded No. 12 Marshall.
According to the ESPN+ broadcast, tickets for the game sold out in just under nine minutes.
Should they not qualify for the tournament, Marshall ends its season with a 11-3-5 record. UCF, meanwhile, improves to a 10-6-3 record as it awaits the NCAA tournament.
The selection show and bracket release for the tournament is scheduled for Monday at 1 p.m., with the first round of the tournament starting on Thursday. The Men's College Cup is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 12 (semifinals) and Monday, Dec. 15 (Championship).
