Men's soccer returns to NCAA Tournament

The cheers and smiles coming from the men's soccer team last night could only mean one thing: Duke's season-long quest to return to the NCAA Tournament was successful.

Gathered at Damon's Restaurant last night, the Duke players and coaches found out that they would be the No. 3 seed in this year's tournament and host Jacksonville (18-4) in the first round.

By compiling an 18-3 record and ending the regular season as the fourth-ranked team in the country, the Blue Devils built a compelling case for the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee to give Duke an at-large bid into this year's field of 32. Nothing was guaranteed, though, as last year the Blue Devils captured the ACC regular season title and were snubbed from the NCAAs.

"It feels great for the seniors," coach John Rennie said. "They brought us all the way to the finals their freshman year and weren't in the last two, so it is particularly exciting for them."

Perhaps the biggest difference between this year and last, according to Rennie, was the Blue Devils' strength of schedule. Duke played five teams which made this year's NCAA field and amassed a 4-3 record against those teams.

The difficulty of schedule can be partially attributed to Duke playing in the ACC, which sent four representatives to the NCAA field this year and received the top three seeds. Clemson and Virginia were ranked Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, by the selection committee.

"The league has been rated the best league in the country by the NCAA every year they've had the ratings," Rennie said. "Once again, it's very obvious that it is the best league in the country."

Maryland, the fourth ACC team to make the NCAA field, is in the same bracket as Duke and is a potential second-round opponent for the Blue Devils. This would set up an interesting rematch, as the Terrapins are one of the three teams to beat Duke this year.