 
 
 |
November 11, 2007
IUP has received a bid to the NCAA Division II playoffs and will play at West Chester in the opening round on Saturday at noon. IUP (8-2) is the sixth seed in the Northeast Region and will face third-seeded West Chester (9-2). The winner of that game will travel to Shepherdstown, W.Va., for a second round game against second-seed Shepherd, which earned a bye after going 9-1 during the regular season. In the other first round game in the Northeast Region, fifth-seeded Bryant (8-2) will go to New Haven, Conn., for a contest against fourth-seed Southern Connecticut State (8-3). That winner will play at top-seed California (11-0) in the other semifinal. The Crimson Hawks are in the postseason for the first time since 2002, and IUP is 15-13 all-time in playoff games, reached the national semifinals six times (1989-91, 1993-94 and 1999) and advanced to the national championship game in 1990 and 1993. Saturday's game will mark IUP's 14th trip to the playoffs, a total tied with North Dakota and trailing only Pittsburg State (15) among current Division II schools. In its last trip to the playoffs in 2002, IUP rallied for a 27-23 win over Saginaw Valley State at Miller Stadium before losing to eventual national champion Grand Valley State 62-21 in the Northeast Region final. IUP holds a 9-6 series lead over West Chester, but this is the first time the teams have met in the playoffs. The teams last faced each other during the 2005 regular season, a 30-20 Golden Rams victory at Farrell Stadium. The Crimson Hawks are 4-1 vs. PSAC schools in the postseason, including wins over Edinboro (1990), Shippensburg (1991) and Slippery Rock and Millersville (1999) and a loss to Millersville in 1988. |
