MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The 2018 NCAA Championship begins in Morgantown on Thursday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. ET, as the No. 17 West Virginia University men's soccer team hosts LIU Brooklyn in the first round at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
 
The Mountaineers (13-6-0) are making their 13th NCAA Championship appearance and first since 2011. WVU, the 2018 Mid-American Conference regular-season champions, will open NCAA play against the Blackbirds (13-5-1), who won the Northeast Conference.
 
Tickets | Live Stream | Live Stats | Twitter
 
Tickets are available at WVUGAME.com, by calling 1-800 WVU GAME, at the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum or on match day at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for students and children under 12 on game day, and $3 for groups of 10 or more when purchased in advance. Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance at WVUGAME.com to avoid lines at the gate on game day. Tickets for WVU students are free with a valid student I.D.
 
To provide a safer environment for Mountaineer fans and to expedite entry into all ticketed WVU athletic events, the West Virginia Department of Intercollegiate Athletics enforces the NFL's Clear Bag Policy. The athletic department invites and encourages fans to visit WVUsports.com/clearbag for more information, to view pictures of permissible and non-permissible items and to obtain answers to frequently asked questions about the clear bag policy.
 
The match will be streamed live for free on WVUsports.com/Watch and the WVU Gameday App, while fans also can watch the stream live via Roku and Apple TV by searching for the "West Virginia Mountaineers" channel. Live stats will be available at NCAA.com. Direct links to the video stream and live stats can be found on the men's soccer schedule page on WVUsports.com. Additional updates, news and notes will be available on social media by following and connecting with @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

"We are excited for the opportunity to host the first round of the NCAA Tournament against a very good LIU Brooklyn team," WVU coach Marlon LeBlanc said. "LIU Brooklyn has won a lot of games this year, and they are an experienced, well-coached team. We are looking forward to the challenge and playing at home in front of Mountaineer Nation, and I know our fans be ready to support us tomorrow night, as they have all season long."
 
The Mountaineers will host an NCAA contest for the seventh time in program history and fourth in LeBlanc's 13-year tenure. All-time, WVU is 5-12-0 in the NCAA Tournament and 4-2-0 at home. WVU is 3-6-0 in the first round and 3-1-0 in the opening round at home.
 
West Virginia enters the 48-team NCAA Championship field having won 11 of its last 14 matches. The Mountaineers' 13 wins on the season are two shy of tying the program record of 15, set in 2006. WVU is ranked No. 17 in this week's Soccer America poll and No. 18 in the United Soccer Coaches and TopDrawerSoccer.com rankings.
 
Statistically, WVU leads the MAC in nearly every category. The Mountaineers rank No. 5 nationally in total assists (46), No. 10 in points (122), No. 11 in shot accuracy (.494) and fewest fouls per game (9.42), No. 15 in goals (38) and No. 16 in scoring offense (2.00). Additionally, West Virginia paces the MAC in saves per game (3.95) and save percentage (.758).
 
Individually, senior midfielder Joey Piatczyc ranks No. 6 in the country in assists per game (0.56) and No. 10 with five game-winning goals, while he leads the MAC with nine assists and 1.44 points per game. Junior midfielder Andres Muriel Albino is No. 20 in the NCAA in shot accuracy (0.581), and sophomore goalkeeper Steven Tekesky ranks No. 27 in minutes played (1711:37) and No. 30 in total saves (71). Tekesky also leads the league in saves per game (3.74).
 
SCOUTING LIU BROOKLYN
LIU Brooklyn is 13-5-1 on the season and won the Northeast Conference regular-season and tournament titles. The Blackbirds have won 12 of their last 14 matches, a stretch that began with a nine-match win streak.
 
LIU Brooklyn is making its 15th NCAA Championship appearance and first since 2015. The Blackbirds are 7-13-2 all-time in NCAA play, including a national runner-up finish in 1966 and a semifinal appearance in 1967.
 
Rasmus Hansen leads the team with seven goals and joins Fredrik Mathisen with 15 points, while Filip Nordstrom has a team-best nine assists. Sam Ilin has made 58 saves for a .829 save percentage with a 0.86 goals-against average and 12 goals allowed.
 
TJ Kostecky is in his 20th season at LIU Brooklyn. He guided the Blackbirds to the NCAA Tournament in 2004 and 2015 and is 139-178-45 at LIU Brooklyn and 265-249-63 in his 31-year career.
 
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE BLACKBIRDS
West Virginia has never faced LIU Brooklyn but is 31-9-1 all-time against current members of the NEC. That includes a 3-1 win over Saint Francis (Pa.), on Sept. 15, in Morgantown. LIU Brooklyn suffered a 1-0 loss at SFU on Oct. 21.
 
UP NEXT: NCAA SECOND ROUND
The winner between WVU and LIU Brooklyn will advance to the NCAA Championship Second Round to face No. 13-seeded Georgetown on Sunday, Nov. 18, in Washington, D.C.
 
LAST TIME OUT: LOSS IN MAC SEMIS
No. 12 West Virginia's five-match win streak was snapped with a 3-1 loss to Akron in the MAC Semifinals on Nov. 9. The Mountaineers lost for just the second time at home this year, as their win streak, tied for the sixth-longest in the nation, came to an end on a rain-soaked evening in Morgantown.
 
WVU took a 1-0 lead 11 seconds into the match, but the Zips answered to tie it 92 seconds later and took the lead in the 43rd minute. West Virginia trailed by two goals for just the third time this year when UA added its final goal in the 66th minute.
 
WVU's goal came courtesy of Muriel Albino, with assists to sophomore defender Kevin Morris and Piatczyc.
 
West Virginia was out-shot, 20-6, while Akron had seven shots on goal to WVU's four. Sophomore goalkeeper Steven Tekesky made three saves and the defense cleared another ball off the line, while the Zips' Ben Lundt also made three saves.
 
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUMensSoccer on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.