WVU Soccer Claims Regular Season Sun Belt Title Thanks to Draw with Marshall

Wednesday marked a big night in West Virginia as bragging rights and a championship were the line in Huntington. And after the dust settled on the pitch, WVU soccer lifted the Sun Belt Conference trophy after the match finished in a scoreless draw.

Despite a full blank sheet for both teams, West Virginia was crowned the Sun Belt regular season champions.

THE MOUNTAINEERS ARE SUN BELT REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS!!!#HailWV pic.twitter.com/LAKNDcCeCC

— WVU Men's Soccer (@WVUMensSoccer) November 6, 2024

Entering the day, WVU needed a win or a draw while Marshall had to secure a victory.

With the draw, West Virginia moves their overall record to 10-1-6 on the season and 5-0-4 within Sun Belt play. Conversely, Marshall is 9-1-6 and 4-0-5 in the conference.

West Virginia’s 2024 title avenges losing to Marshall at this same point last season when the Thundering Herd became the regular season champions after defeating WVU 3-2.

WVU head coach Dan Stratford experienced a Gatorade bath as his team celebrated the favorable outcome.

No escaping a nice refreshing bath for the gaffer!#HailWV pic.twitter.com/sVvJAiZlOF

— WVU Men's Soccer (@WVUMensSoccer) November 6, 2024

Prior to this in-state contest for the right to be called the best in the state for the time being and a trophy to boot, both teams already clinched the right to host at least the first two rounds of the Sun Belt Tournament, which starts on Sunday, Nov. 10.

But now as the regular season champions, WVU becomes the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.

Of course, a regular season title is far from the goal for the Mountaineers. West Virginia is now hoping to capture an eighth conference tournament title in program history and then make another deep NCAA Tournament run. In 2023, WVU advanced all the way to the College Cup as one of the final four remaining teams in the country.

West Virginia’s historic 2023 season came to an end with a 1-0 loss to Clemson in the College Cup national semifinal.

For a related story, WVU soccer set an attendance record in a win over Marshall in October 2023.