LEBANON, Tenn.–Cumberland University men’s soccer head coach Julian Lucumi announces the fall schedule featuring eight home contests.
First-year head coach Julian Lucumi will take over the helm and start a new era of Cumberland Men’s Soccer with their first regular season game on August 17th. Lucumi was elevated to head coach during the summer and will take over last season’s Mid-South Conference Championship team that finished 12-5-3.
The Phoenix will take on five teams that made the NAIA National Tournament last season with four of the matchup being Opening Round Hosts. Cumberland will face Rio Grande, Dalton State, and on the back half of the conference schedule the Cumberlands, Bethel and Lindsey Wilson in three-straight contests.
The Phoenix will open up the 2024 schedule with their first regular season match at home on August 17th against Blue Mountain University. The next week CU will travel to Ohio for road contests against Northwestern Ohio on August 22 and Rio Grande on August 24. Rio Grande was the 11-seed in last season’s national championship field and an opening round host.
Cumberland will have three-straight home starting on August 31 against Thomas University. CU will host Brescia on September 4 and have a return match from last season against Faulkner on September 7 at Lindsey Donnell Field.
CU will head to Pulaski on September 10 for a match with former conference opponent Tennessee Southern. On September 13, Cumberland will head to Dalton, Georgia and face off with Dalton State. The Roadrunners were the No. 4 seed in the NAIA National Tournament last season and made it to the NAIA Quarterfinals.
From Dalton, Cumberland will travel to St. Louis, Missouri to face the Spartans from Missouri Baptist on September 18.
Cumberland will have some rest with a week and half off before opening up Mid-South Conference play on the road at Georgetown on September 27. Cambellsville will come to Lebanon on Friday, October 4.
The last non-conference game of the season will be on October 9 at home against Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. The Phoenix will then return to conference play on October 12 in Henderson, Tennessee against Freed-Hardeman.
Cumberland will have to go through the gauntlet for their final three matches of the season against the Cumberlands, Bethel, and Lindsey Wilson. The Phoenix will start that stretch on the road against the Cumberlands. The Patriots made it to the Second Round of the National Tournament last season before being ousted by William Penn.
The final two matches of the regular season will be played at Lindsey Donnell Field. Cumberland will host Bethel on October 23. The Wildcats were the 10-seed in the National Tournament last season and were upset by Columbia 1-0 in McKenzie in the Second Round.
The last match of the season will be a rematch of the Mid-South Conference Championship last season as CU will line up with Lindsey Wilson on October 29. The Blue Raiders were the No. 2 seed in the National Championship last season and were also upset in the second round by Indiana Tech.
The conference tournament will be played on November 8th or 9th at the higher seed. The No. 1 seed of the tournament will receive a bye and will host the semifinals and the finals. The semifinals will be played on Wednesday, November 13th with the finals scheduled for Friday, November 15th.
The First and Second Round of the 66th Annual Men’s Soccer National Championship will be played on November 21-23 at campus sites. The final site of the NAIA National Championships will be in Wichita, Kansas starting on December 2 with the National Championship match to be played on December 9.
Source: Cumberland
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