Winthrop University

Winthrop men to face Elon in College Cup

Tournament MVP Max Habenstab goes for a ball near a High Point defender on Sunday in the Big South Men’s Soccer Championship in High Point, N.C. Habenstab had the winning penalty kick in Winthrop’s victory.
Tournament MVP Max Habenstab goes for a ball near a High Point defender on Sunday in the Big South Men’s Soccer Championship in High Point, N.C. Habenstab had the winning penalty kick in Winthrop’s victory.

Winthrop men’s soccer will meet Elon in the first round of the NCAA College Cup.

The Eagles (11-6-2) edged High Point in penalty kicks on Sunday to win the Big South Conference championship and clinch a sixth trip to the College Cup, the NCAA men’s soccer tournament. They play at Elon 7 p.m. Thursday.

Coach Rich Posipanko’s team enters the College Cup on a high note, without a loss in the last five matches. Winthrop - averaging 2.16 goals per match - is the 11th highest scoring team in Division I. German striker Max Hasenstab’s 13 goals place him seventh nationally in scoring.

Elon finished the regular season 13-5-1, and 6-2 in the tough Colonial Athletic Association. The Phoenix beat nationally-ranked UNCW and Wake Forest, and Davidson, and lost narrowly to nationally-ranked Hofstra and Duke. Elon enters the tournament with a 1-3-1 mark in its last five games, and is hosting its second all-time NCAA College Cup match.

The winner of the Winthrop-Elon match will play Clemson in the second round. The Tigers earned the tournament’s No. 2 overall seed.

This story was originally published November 16, 2015 at 2:00 PM with the headline "Winthrop men to face Elon in College Cup."

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