Those in American soccer circles unfamiliar with the University of Maryland Baltimore County, better known as UMBC, should get to know the Retrievers now.
With a fourth consecutive road shocker Friday, the unheralded, unknown, unseeded and unbelievable Retrievers continued their remarkable run through the NCAA men's tournament by defeating Creighton on penalty kicks and advancing to the College Cup next weekend.
After a 0-0 draw through 110 minutes, UMBC (14-5-5) prevailed in the tiebreaker, 4-3, to secure passage to the semifinals in Cary, N.C. The Retrievers, who before this year had never gone beyond the second round, will face eighth-seeded Georgetown or No. 16 Virginia next Friday night at Wake Med Soccer Park. The Hoyas and Cavaliers will square off Saturday afternoon in Washington.
On the other side of the bracket Saturday, No. 11 Providence will visit third-seeded Michigan State and No. 2 UCLA will host unseeded North Carolina.
The story of this tournament, however, has been UMBC, the three-time reigning champion of the modest America East Conference. Featuring mostly players from the state of Maryland, the Retrievers have not conceded a goal in this national competition, ousting ACC titan Wake Forest on penalty kicks after a 0-0 tie, edging perennial power Maryland and favored Louisville by 1-0 scores and eliminating Creighton (16-3-3) from the Big East.
Sophomore goalkeeper Bill Heavner stopped Creighton's first attempt and the Bluejays hit the left post in the second round. With the score even at 3 in the bottom of the fifth round, Kay Banjo, who transferred to UMBC when Towson closed down its program two seasons ago, clinched it.
The men's tournament is not immune to upsets, by any means, but for a small program to progress to the College Cup is rare. American reached the final in 1985, Florida International got there 11 years later and Massachusetts advanced to the semis in 2007. For the most part, though, almost all final four participants come from schools with a soccer pedigree or affiliation to a major conference. UMBC has hosted one NCAA tournament game in program history (a shootout defeat to Connecticut last year).
Adding to the narrative this fall is the fact the Retrievers were 3-4-2 in late September. Since then, they are 11-1-3 and unbeaten in 10 straight (8-0-2).
UMBC is coached by Pete Caringi, a University of Baltimore graduate who played one season for the Washington Diplomats in the NASL. In 1990, he guided the Maryland Bays to the American Professional Soccer League title, then accepted the UMBC post the following year.
