Mars Hill to face Francis Marion in NCAA Tournament

MARS HILL, N.C. - The Mars Hill men's soccer team has been selected to the 2024 NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Tournament, as announced Monday evening.

The selection show revealed the Mars Hill was tabbed the No. 8 seed in Super Region II and will be hosting the No. 9 Francis Marion Patriots on Friday, November 21 at 3 p.m. inside Meares Stadium. The winner of this contest will go on to face Limestone on Sunday, November 23 at 3 p.m., also played inside Meares Stadium.

The selection marks the first time since 2012 the Lions have been named to the tournament and third time overall. By hosting, this marks the first time since 2011 and second time overall that Mars Hill will host an NCAA tournament game.

Mars Hill ended the season with a 10-3-4 record, advancing to the South Atlantic Conference semifinals for the first time since 2021, ultimately falling to back-to-back SAC Champions, and No. 1 seed in the region, Limestone. The Lions defeated Lincoln Memorial in their first home quarterfinal since 2014 by a score of 4-1.

The Lions are led by the nation's top scorer and SAC Offensive Player of the Year, Peter Plougmand. Plougmand leads the country in goals (24) and points (54), amongst several other categories. 

Plougmand erupted for a quartet of goals against Newberry, tying the Mars Hill school record for the second time in his career and had seven total goals in the first four games of the year. He would go on to record hat tricks against Carson-Newman, Emory & Henry, and in the SAC Quarterfinal against Lincoln Memorial. He has seven games with multiple goals on the year and led Mars Hill to the No. 4 seed in the SAC Tournament and a spot in the semifinals.  

He is the only player in conference history to be named an Offensive Player of the Week four times in a single season. Plougmand was named the statistical champion in goals per match (1.53) and points per match (3.47), both tops in the nation.

Francis Marion won the Conference Carolinas Championship and ended the season with a 10-5-6 record. The Patriots did not allow a goal in their tournament run, defeating Mount Olive in the quarterfinals by a score of 1-0, winning in penalty kicks against Converse in the semifinals after a 0-0 result after 110 minutes played. The Patriots claimed the title with a 1-0 win over Chowan in the championship game.

John Osadolor leads the Patriots with 10 goals and one assist for 21 points on the year.

Francis Marion leads the overall series, 6-2, and has not seen the Lions since 2009. Per the Patriots release, "The Patriots and Lions shared seven commons opponents this season.  Both squads tied Limestone, with Mars Hill also losing to the Saints in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament semifinals.  FMU was 1-0-1 against the University of Mount Olive, while Mars Hill defeated the Trojans.  Both squads have wins over Catawba College, Lenoir-Rhyne University, and Southern Wesleyan University.  The Patriots tied Wingate University, while the Lions fell to the Bulldogs.  FMU lost to Coker, while Mars Hill earned a draw against the Cobras."

Live stat and video links can be found on marshilllions.com throughout the week.