Marshall, Kentucky, West Virginia, and South Carolina all earned victories on Sunday to punch their tickets to the semifinal round of the 2023 Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Tournament. 
 
The semifinals of Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Tournament are slated for Wednesday with two matches beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Top-seeded Marshall and fifth-seeded Kentucky will go head-to-head at Hoops Family Field in Huntington, W.Va., while third-seeded West Virginia and seventh-seeded South Carolina face off at the UCF Soccer Complex in Orlando, Fla. Both matches will be broadcast on ESPN+. 
 
Match 1: (1) No. 4 Marshall 2, (8) Old Dominion 0
 
In front of a sold-out crowd at Hoops Family Field, No. 4 Marshall, who clinched the tournament’s top seed with the Sun Belt Regular Season title, topped eighth-seeded Old Dominion, 1-0, on Sunday evening. 
 
The first half was largely a back-and-forth battle for both squads as Marshall went into the break with a 10-6 advantage in shots. The Herd, playing without 2023 Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year Morris Duggan, saw their best chance in the final minute of the half with a shot from Adam Aoumaich hitting the crossbar. 
 
The Monarchs came out of the break with some momentum, registering a quick shot and earning their first corner kick of the match to open the half. Marshall’s Matthew Bell fired back, giving the Herd an early chance in the 53^rd minute with a shot that went just left of the net. It was ultimately Pablo Simon’s goal for the Herd in the 60^th minute that broke the scoreless deadlock. Bell, the Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Player and Offensive player of the Year, broke Marshall’s single-season assist record (11), finding Simon through traffic to put the Herd on the board. Old Dominion continued to apply offensive pressure, closing the half with 11 shots on the day, but the Herd back line held strong to keep the Monarchs scoreless. Marshall added a security goal to its total in the 85^th minute from Agustin Iusem, his first of the season. 
 
Monarchs’ keeper Michael Statham finished the day with five saves, while Marshall’s Gabriel Perrotta, the 2023 Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Goalkeeper of the Year, brought his shutout total to a league-best 9.5 with the quarterfinal victory.
 
Match 2: (5) Kentucky 2, (4) James Madison 1
 
In a repeat of last season’s Championship match, fifth-seeded Kentucky once again prevailed, upsetting fourth-seeded James Madison, 2-1, in the quarterfinal round of the 2023 Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Championship. Kentucky notched its fourth straight victory with the win and is now unbeaten in its last eight matches. 
 
Kentucky was the first to strike, with Mason Visconti netting his third goal in two matches off a pass from Isaiah Chisolm in the 26^th minute. The Wildcats’ lead didn’t last long, as the Dukes responded just 46 seconds later with a goal from Rodrigo Robles. Robles, who darted into the box ahead of a Kentucky defender, gave James Madison the equalizer off a cross from Demitri Turner. 
 
A diving save on a penalty kick by Kentucky keeper Casper Mols swung the momentum in the Wildcats’ favor to start the second half. Kentucky midfielder Max Miller one-timed a cross toward the box and found Ben Damge, who scored off a spin move to give Kentucky the lead in the 54^th minute.
 
As tension began to rise, a Kentucky red card on Martin Soereide forced the Wildcats to play a man down with 26 minutes on the clock. Despite the disadvantage, Kentucky staved off the Dukes’ late offensive push, strategically placing five defenders in the box to hold onto its lead.  
 
Match 3: (3) No. 7 West Virginia 3, (6) Georgia State 1
 
The first multi-goal game of senior forward Yutaro Tsukada’s Mountaineer career helped lift No. 3-seeded West Virginia to a 3-1 win over No. 6-seeded Georgia State in the Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Championship quarterfinals.  
 
A diving deflection on a penalty kick by Georgia State senior goalkeeper Josue Hangi in the 40th minute kept the game knotted at 0-0 heading into halftime.  
 
Georgia State broke through first in the 51st minute, with junior forward Ethan Sassine heading home a beautiful cross from junior defender Hideto Gondo—who had streaked down the right flank to receive the ball from Panther sophomore midfielder Justin McClean.  
 
Just five minutes later, West Virginia senior midfielder Ryan Baer one-timed a cross toward frame, but it was blocked by a Panther defender. That rebound found the feet of Mountaineer fifth-year midfielder Luke McCormick, who slotted it home near the bottom left post for the 56th-minute equalizer.  
 
Tsukada—who had been denied on the first-half penalty kick—sent a dribbler into the bottom left corner of the netting after the Mountaineers had worked up the left flank for the go-ahead goal in the 69th minute and added a long-distance strike from outside the box to the top right corner of the frame in the 76th minute to produce the final tally.  
 
Match 4: (7) South Carolina 2, (2) No. 1 UCF 1
 
No. 7-seeded South Carolina used a pair of first-half markers to upset No. 2-seeded UCF in the Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Championship quarterfinals.  
 
South Carolina charged up the left flank, where fifth-year defender Kasper Lehm played a perfect through ball to junior forward Harrison Myring. Myring ran onto it and beat the UCF goalkeeper on the near side for the sixth-minute quick strike.  
 
In the 24th minute, Gamecocks freshman midfielder Jordan Illian crossed the ball into the box, where it was flicked home off the head of redshirt sophomore midfielder Jack Burgess to the bottom left corner of the frame for the insurance tally.  

A 49th-minute save by UCF sophomore goalkeeper Juanvi Munoz on a one-on-one breakaway shot off the foot of Myring kept the Knights in the game early in the second half. 

Then, in the 58th minute, UCF senior defender Anderson Rosa rocketed the ball around the wall and tucked it just inside the left post on a free kick from a step outside the box to pull the Knights within one.  
 
With 44 seconds to play, UCF earned another free kick near the box. Rosa attempted to recapture the magic with another curling ball around the wall—but this one sailed wide left of frame to seal the Knights fate on its home pitch.  
 
2023 Sun Belt Men’s Soccer Tournament
 
Quarterfinals – Sunday, November 5
Hosted by No. 1 Marshall
Match 1 – (1) Marshall 2, (8) Old Dominion 0  
Match 2 – (5) Kentucky 2, (4) James Madison 1
 
Hosted by No. 2 UCF
Match 3 – (3) West Virginia 3, (6) Georgia State 1
Match 4 – (7) South Carolina 2, (2) UCF 1
 
Semifinals – Wednesday, November 8
Hosted by No. 1 Marshall
Match 5 – (1) Marshall vs. (5) Kentucky, 7 p.m.
 
Hosted by No. 2 UCF
Match 6 – (3) West Virginia vs. (7) South Carolina , 7p.m.
 
Championship – Sunday, November 12
Hosted by Highest Remaining Seed
Match 7 – Winner Match 5 vs. Winner Match 6, 1 p.m.