The Pitt men’s soccer team, which has won at least one NCAA Tournament game in each of the last four seasons, will have a chance to continue that streak Thursday night.
The Panthers will play host to James Madison at 7 p.m. at Ambrose Urbanic Field in Oakland.
Pitt went 6-6-4 in the regular season, finished tied for fourth in the ACC Coastal Division with a 2-2-3 record and lost 2-1 in overtime to Louisville in the first round of the conference tournament. The Panthers, however, had the No. 1 strength of schedule in the country and were 30th in RPI.
James Madison went 8-4-5 overall, 4-2-3 in the Sun Belt. Both Pitt and JMU received at-large bids to the tournament.
The winner will visit fourth-seeded Georgetown in the second round Sunday.
Pitt is 10-3-1 in the NCAA Tournament over the past four seasons, advancing to the College Cup twice and the Elite Eight three times.
The Panthers enter the tournament led by three players who earned all-ACC recognition last week. Midfielder Filip Mirkovic made the first team, defender Jackson Gilman the second team and forward Alber Thorsen was selected to the all-freshman team.
