2009 NIRSA National Soccer Championship

The 2009 'NIRSA national soccer championship' was the 16th NIRSA National Soccer Championships, the annual national championships for United States-based, collegiate club soccer teams organized by NIRSA. It took place at Reach 11 Sports Complex, in Phoenix, Arizona from Thursday, November 19 to Saturday, November 21, 2009.

Overview

Men's championship

In the finals, the [2002 National Intramural and Recreational Sports Association|NIRSA National Soccer Championship|2002] champions Weber State would face finals debutants Florida. Coming into the finals, despite losing their opening match 2–0 to Michigan, Florida would go on to win their next four games by an average of a 3-goal margin and wouldn't concede another goal. Meanwhile, after winning their opening match, Weber State would tie their group stage finale 0–0, win a 2–1 game over Georgia in the round of 16, require PKs over Texas A&M in the quarterfinals, and finally would score a late goal in a 2–1 win against Michigan in the semifinals.
In the finals, the score would remain 0–0 after regulation and extra time, meaning penalty kicks would determine the men's champion for the second time in three years. Weber State would kick first and get their first attempt saved. The next two kicks would be scored but after Florida hit the crossbar the score would be 1–1 after two rounds. The next two rounds would see zero kicks converted with a save, two misses, and a save respectively, meaning the score would remain 1–1 after 4 rounds. Both teams would score in the fifth round which meant an extra round of kicks were to be taken. After Weber State scored, eventual goalkeeper of the tournament, Jan Robbins, would save a third Florida attempt, sealing Weber State's 3–2 win in penalty kicks and secure their second men's championship title. Weber State's Scott Whitesides would be named men's championship MVP.

Women's championship

In the finals, a rematch of the 2001 championship game between Penn State and UC-Santa Barbara. Penn State won the 2001 championship 1-0 but UC-Santa Barbara was two-time reigning champions. Coming into the finals, UC-Santa Barbara would have a 4–0 loss in their group stage finale against Colorado but would wouldn't concede a goal in their next three games. Meanwhile, Penn State would only concede one goal in their five games, the only goal coming in the quarterfinals against Arizona.
In the finals, UC-Santa Barbara's Laura Capparilli would open the scoring in the 13th minute and a second goal from UCSB's Tannia Hernandez would be enough to see UC-Santa Barbara win 2–0 and secure their fourth women's championship title and third straight, making them the first women's championship team to win three consecutive titles. This win also saw them join Colorado and Michigan in being the only women's championship teams to have four titles. UC-Santa Barbara's Alyssa Donikia would be named women's championship MVP.

Men's open

In the finals, the only two-time men's open division champions, JMU, would face finals debutants San Diego State. Coming into the finals, JMU would require extra time against UConn in the quarterfinals but would win 6–2 in the semifinals over UCLA. Meanwhile, San Diego State would win their quarterfinal match against East Carolina 3–0 then defeat Villanova 2–1 in the semifinals. In the finals, the game would be tied 1–1 after regulation and extra time, which meant penalty kicks would determine the men's open title. JMU would win 6–5 in penalty kicks and secure their third men's open championship. JMU's Brian Murphy would be named men's open MVP.

Women's open

In the finals, Oregon would face JMU; the first women's open title for both teams. Coming into the finals, JMU would win their first two group stage games 6–0 and 8–0 respectively, followed by a 2–1 victory in their group stage finale against Boston College. Meanwhile, Oregon would also be undefeated but would tie their group stage finale against Colorado 0–0. Both teams would win their quarterfinal matchup and have a rematch against a group stage opponent in the semifinals. JMU would win their rematch 3–0 over Boston College while Oregon would require penalty kicks against Colorado "Black" after a 1–1 score line after regulation, which they would win 5–3. In the finals, JMU would win 2–0 and secure their first women's open title, meaning both open champions would represent the same school for the first time in tournament history. JMU's Maureen Finn would be named women's open MVP.

Format

The competition consisted of 80 teams: 48 championship division teams and 32 open division teams. Each of these divisions were further divided into two equal sized divisions for men and women. The championship division divided teams into eight groups of three teams each while the open division divided teams into four groups of four teams each, both engaging in a round-robin tournament that determined teams able to advance to a knockout stage. Pool play games were two 40-minute halves, separated by a seven-minute halftime and utilized the three points for a win system. After group stage play, the two highest ranked teams from each group advanced to their respective knockout stage. In the championship division, the third placed team advanced to a consolation bracket while in the open division, the third and fourth placed teams were eliminated.

Tie-breaking criteria for group play

The ranking of teams in each group was based on the following criteria in order:

Highest number of points
Winner of head-to-head competition
Greatest goal difference
* Maximum ± 5 goal difference per match
Most goals scored
Most shutouts

In a tie breaking scenario involving more than 2 teams, the tiebreaker procedure would begin. If one team is identified as different and both remaining teams are still tied, the tie breaker procedure is restarted.
If a tie still remained after the first 5 criteria, the following was used to break a tie:

NCAA kicks from the mark
* If there was a three-way tie, a coin-flip would be conducted. The two teams that chose the same outcome would compete in kicks from the mark between each other. The winner would compete with the last remaining team in kicks from the mark
* If there's a four-way tie, a drawing of lots would be conducted

Knockout stage games also consisted of two 40-minute halves. The round of 16 and quarterfinals were separated by a seven-minute halftime while the semifinals and finals had a ten-minute halftime. Knockout stage games needed to declare a winner, therefore if a game was tied at the end of regulation, one 15-minute, golden-goal overtime period would begin. If still tied after overtime, kicks from the mark would determine the winner.

Qualification and selections

Each of the six regions received three automatic bids for both the men's and women's championship that they awarded to its members. The final six bids were considered "at-large", and were given out by NIRSA to teams, typically based on their regional tournament results and RPI.
The 32 remaining teams participated in the open division, chosen on a first-come first-serve basis online on September 14, 2009 with a limit of 16 teams per gender division.

Men's championship

Source:

Group stage

Men's championship

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Colorado State	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Georgia	2	0	1	1	1	2	−1	1	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Johns Hopkins	2	0	1	1	1	4	−3	1	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Weber State	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	4	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Michigan State	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	2	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Texas State	2	0	1	1	1	2	−1	1	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Ohio State	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1	4	Advanced to knockout stage
2	North Carolina	2	1	0	1	2	2	0	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	UC–Berkeley	2	0	1	1	0	1	−1	1	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Michigan	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2	4	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Florida	2	1	0	1	4	2	+2	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Delaware	2	0	1	1	0	4	−4	1	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Missouri	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Colorado	2	1	0	1	2	3	−1	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	UW – Milwaukee	2	0	0	2	1	4	−3	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	UC-Santa Barbara	2	2	0	0	5	0	+5	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Texas A&M	2	1	0	1	2	2	0	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Navy	2	0	0	2	1	6	−5	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Minnesota	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Cal Poly	2	1	0	1	1	1	0	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Illinois	2	0	0	2	0	3	−3	0	Consolation

Women's championship

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	UCLA	2	2	0	0	5	1	+4	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Illinois	2	1	0	1	4	2	+2	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Colorado Mines	2	0	0	2	2	8	−6	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Penn State	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Marquette	2	1	0	1	3	1	+2	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Missouri	2	0	0	2	0	5	−5	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Colorado	2	2	0	0	6	1	+5	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	UC-Santa Barbara	2	1	0	1	3	5	−2	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Delaware	2	0	0	2	2	5	−3	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Texas	2	2	0	0	4	2	+2	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Virginia Tech	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1	1	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Cornell	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1	1	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Arizona	2	1	1	0	3	0	+3	4	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Ohio State	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2	4	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Denver	2	0	0	2	0	5	−5	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Virginia	2	2	0	0	5	2	+3	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Texas A&M	2	1	0	1	4	8	−4	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	The College of New Jersey	2	0	0	2	4	3	+1	0	Consolation

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Michigan	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	6	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Texas State	2	1	0	1	3	3	0	3	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Colorado State	2	0	0	2	1	5	−4	0	Consolation

Men's open

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Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	JMU	3	3	0	0	13	1	+11	9	Advanced to knockout stage
2	UCLA	3	2	0	1	3	2	+1	6	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Wichita State	3	1	0	2	5	7	−2	3	-
4	Iowa State	3	0	0	3	2	13	−10	0	-

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Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	San Diego State	3	2	1	0	7	2	+5	7	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Colorado “Black”	3	2	0	1	4	3	+1	6	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Texas	3	1	1	1	4	4	0	4	-
4	Towson	3	0	1	2	1	7	−6	1	-

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Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Villanova	3	2	1	0	4	1	+3	7	Advanced to knockout stage
2	East Carolina	3	1	2	0	3	2	+1	5	Advanced to knockout stage
3	USC	3	0	1	2	4	5	−1	1	-
4	Kansas	3	0	1	2	3	6	−3	1	-

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Women's open

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Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Colorado “Black”	3	2	1	0	13	0	+10	7	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Oregon	3	2	1	0	7	0	+7	7	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Towson	3	1	0	2	3	10	−5	3	-
4	Vanderbilt	3	0	0	3	1	14	−12	0	-

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Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	JMU	3	3	0	0	16	1	+11	9	Advanced to knockout stage
2	Boston College	3	2	0	1	9	2	+7	6	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Miami	3	1	0	2	2	10	−7	3	-
4	Iowa State	3	0	0	3	0	14	−11	0	-

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Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	UC–Berkeley	3	2	1	0	8	0	+8	7	Advanced to knockout stage
2	UW – Milwaukee	3	2	1	0	4	1	+3	7	Advanced to knockout stage
3	Vermont	3	1	0	2	2	6	−4	3	-
4	Colorado State “Green”	3	0	0	3	2	9	−7	0	-

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Tournament bracket

Women's open

Source: