Courtesy: Mike Wise Photography http://mikewise07.smugmug.com/University-of-Akron-Mens/2009-Men

AKRON, Ohio - When the University of Akron men's soccer team begins its quest for the school's first national championship, it will do so as the No. 1 seed of the 2009 NCAA Tournament.

The Zips (20-0-0) were awarded the top seed among the 48-team field during the NCAA Selection Show as seen on ESPNews Monday evening. As the No. 1 seed, UA will host the winner of Stetson at South Florida Sunday at 4 p.m. at Lee Jackson Field.

"We're very excited; this is what we've worked hard for all year long," said UA head coach Caleb Porter. "Our vision when we started this journey three months ago was to win the national championship. In order to do that, you have to put yourself in the best position possible going into the NCAA Tournament.

"Our players dug deep all year. They learned lessons and got battled-tested but they also got results. And by getting results, you put yourself in the best position possible with the seeding. With the No. 1 seed, we've paved our way the best we possibly could. Now the fun starts."

It is the highest seed ever obtained by an Akron team and the fifth time overall the men's soccer team has been seeded. The Zips were the nation's No. 15 seed in 2003, the No. 9 seed in 2005, the No. 14 seed in 2007 and the No. 5 seed in 2008.

As the No. 1 seed, Akron receives a first-round bye and the right to host three games through the quarterfinal round. UA is undefeated last 23 games (22-0-1) at Lee Jackson Field dating back to the 2007 season.

The 2009 College Cup will be held at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., on December 11th and 13th and will feature the semifinal and championship rounds.

"It's a new season," Porter said. "We're 0-0 and we're going to take things one game at a time. We don't know who we're going to play yet, but it doesn't matter. We've played all different types of teams this year so we know no matter what the game will be like, we'll be up for it."

South Florida (13-3-1) and Stetson (14-3-2) will face off in the first round Thursday in Tampa. UA picked up a 3-1 win against the Bulls, who defeated the Zips in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2007, in an exhibition match at Lee Jackson Field during the preseason. Akron has never faced Stetson.

The three other seeded teams in UA's bracket include No. 8 Tulsa (13-4-2), No. 9 Northwestern (10-4-4) and No. 16 UC Irvine (15-6-0).

When Akron takes the field Sunday, it will represent the 24th time the Zips have competed in the NCAA Tournament. UA made its deepest postseason run in 1986 when it advanced all to way to the championship game but was defeated by Duke, 1-0.

The Zips have now qualified for the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons under fourth-year head coach Caleb Porter. UA has earned first-round byes each year and advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2008.

Akron, the consensus No. 1 team in the nation for the last two months, enters the NCAA postseason riding the fourth longest, single-season win streak in the NCAA history and is aiming to become the first team in 35 years to win a national championship with a perfect record. Howard was the last to do it (19-0-0 in 1974) and is one of just six teams to ever accomplish the feat.

Moreover, with four more wins - which would advance the Zips to the national title match - Akron would set an NCAA record for most consecutive games without a loss or tie.

It is also important to note that the Zips, who have already set a program high for wins this fall, have put themselves in position to accomplish these feats despite the most-difficult schedule in the nation - as evidenced by its No. 1 NCAA RPI ranking in the final release of the regular season.

The RPI is rating is a mathematical formula designed to objectively compare results and strength of schedule and is one of the key indicators used by the NCAA in determining seeding and at-large bids to the NCAA Tournament.

Akron won its sixth Mid-American Conference Tournament championship in eight years yesterday by defeating Hartwick 2-1 at Lee Jackson Field. The Zips boast the nation's No. 1 ranked attacking unit, averaging 2.65 goals per game and lead all Division I programs in shutout percentage (.700) with 14 shutouts in 20 contests. UA is ranked third in goals-against-average with a 0.35 mark.

2009 NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament
First Round: Thurs., Nov. 19*
Second Round: Sun., Nov. 22, 4 p.m.
Third Round: Sun., Nov. 29, 4 p.m.
Quarterfinals: Sat., Dec. 5, 4 p.m.
Semifinals: Fri., Dec. 11, 5 p.m./7 p.m.
Finals: Sun., Dec. 13, 1 p.m.

* top 16 seeds earn first-round byes