HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's soccer team held its position as the fifth-ranked team in the third release of the NCAA's Mid-Atlantic soccer region rankings. The Fords (12-4, 8-1 CC) are currently riding a nine-match winning streak into the Centennial Conference Tournament after enjoying a perfect month of October. These rankings ultimately lead up to the selection of at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament.
The final set of regional rankings will be released on Monday, November 5 following the NCAA Selection Show which will be streamed online at 1 p.m.
With a strength of schedule that rivals any other team in the region, the Fords should be in line for another bump this weekend as five of the top nine schools are the region come from the Centennial Conference. Haverford earned the right to host the Centennial Conference Tournament by finishing in first place in the Centennial Conference's regular season standings. The Fords will play the winner of fourth-seeded Dickinson (No. 6 in Mid-Atlantic Region) and fifth-seeded Gettysburg (unranked in region) on Saturday at 11 a.m. on Walton Field. The Red Devils and Bullets play their first round matchup today at 4 p.m. in Carlisle.
Second-seeded Johns Hopkins (No. 3 in Mid-Atlantic Region) and third-seeded Franklin & Marshall (No. 2 in Mid-Atlantic Region) will make up the second semifinal on Walton Field Saturday. That match will start no earlier than 1:30 p.m. Sunday's championship match, which will also decide the Centennial Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start.
Backing up the Fords' high strength of schedule rating is the fact that the team has played eight matches against regionally-ranked competition during the regular season. That total is the second-highest mark across the region. The Fords have split those matches with regionally-ranked wins over Johns Hopkins, Dickinson, Gettysburg (previously No. 10), and Swarthmore (No. 10 in Mid-Atlantic Region).
The Fords will have a full week of recovery before beginning the conference tournament after closing the regular season with three victories in five days. Haverford will be hosting the Centennial Conference Tournament for the third time in the last four seasons after having won on both of those previous occasions during the 2015 and 2016 campaigns.