The SUNY Oneonta men's soccer team will begin its quest for a third consecutive conference title and NCAA berth this Wednesday when they host Plattsburgh in the semifinal round of the 2013 SUNYAC tournament.  Oneonta is the No. 1 seed for this year's tournament and Plattsburgh earned its trip to Oneonta when they defeated Buffalo State this past Saturday, 2-1.  Plattsburgh is the No. 4 seed for this year's tournament after finishing fourth in the regular season.

The match is scheduled to begin 30 minutes after the conclusion of the Oneonta women's semifinal versus Brockport.  Admission is $6 for adults, $3 for children 5-12, free for children under 5 and SUNY Oneonta students with a valid college ID.

Oneonta (11-3-4) is ranked No. 4 in the most recent NCAA East Region poll and finished with a 7-0-2 record in the conference this season while capturing the regular season title outright.  This was the second year in the last three that the Red Dragons have completed and unbeaten regular season in the conference.  In 2011, Oneonta was 8-0-1 in SUNYAC play.

Oneonta closed the season 2-0-1 in its final three games including a weekend sweep at Buffalo State and Fredonia to clinch the top seed for the tournament.  As a team, the Red Dragons led the conference in goals (43) and points (123).  They were also second in goals against average (0.72), just percentage points behind Brockport.

Oneonta is seeking its third straight SUNYAC title after winning back-to-back championships in 2011 and 2012.  In 2011, Oneonta advanced all the way to the championship weekend in San Antonio after claiming its first conference title since 1985.  Since being eligible for the conference tournament in 2008, Oneonta has qualified each year.  This will be the fourth straight year that Oneonta is playing in the semifinals of the conference tournament.

In the regular season meeting between the two teams, Oneonta came from behind to defeat Plattsburgh at home 2-1 in double overtime.  Sophomore Zef Saljanin (Yorktown Heights/Yorktown) scored the game-winner on a restart with three seconds remaining in the second overtime.

Sophomore Dylan Williams (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) is having a breakout season this fall, as he leads Oneonta in Goals (10) and points (23).  Classmates Saljanin (16 pts), Alex Winiarski (Great Neck/St. Anthony's) (12 pts) and Jake Sutherland (Syracuse/West Genesee) (10 pts) are all in the top-5 in scoring on the team this season.  Senior Luke Halberg (Norwich/Valley Heights Christian Academy) rounds out this quintet of double-digit performers with 10 points.  Williams is second in the SUNYAC in goals and points while Winiarski is third in assists with six.

Saljanin and Halberg are tied for the team lead in game-winning goals with two each.

Junior transfer, Vincent Pellegrino (Baldwin/Baldwin), has seen the most action in goal for the Red Dragons this fall.  He currently 5-2-3 in 11 starts for the Red Dragons.  In 991 minutes, he has a 0.73 goals against average and has recorded three shutouts.  Classmate Daniel DeBottis (/) has a 0.74 goals against in eight starts and is 4-1-1 with one shutout.  Pellegrino is second in the SUNYAC in goals against and is third in save percentage (.818).

Plattsburgh enters Wednesday's game with an overall record of 13-5-1.  They finished the SUNYAC regular season with a record of 6-3.  The Cardinals are No. 9 in the latest NCAA East Region poll.

Wednesday's winner will play Saturday in the championship game versus the winner of the SUNY Cortland/Brockport game, also being played Wednesday, at Cortland.  The highest remaining seed hosts the championship game.