For the sixth time in 24 NESCAC Men's Soccer Championships the top seed was knocked out in the quarterfinal round. The Amherst Mammoths upset top-seeded Middlebury and was one of three lower seeds to prevail in the opening roud. The 2026 conference championip is the second time and first since 2018 that three lower seeds advanced to the semifinal round.

Second-seeded Williams was a 1-0 winner over Wesleyan and will host the remaining rounds of the NESCAC Championship at Cole Field on Nov. 7-8.

All games will be streamed for free via the NESCAC NETWORK powered by NSN. The NESCAC NETWORK is available on the streaming apps for television (Android TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku), computers, and mobile devices (iOS, Android). Find the apps by searching for NESCAC Network in your device’s app store. Download the app and begin watching wherever you are.

No. 8 Amherst def. No. 1 Middlebury, 3-2 | Box Score
Finn Hoefer scored twice, including the go-ahead goal in the 68th minute, and No. 8 Amherst upset top-seeded Middlebury, 3-2, in a NESCAC Quarterfinal at South Street Field. Hoefer opened the scoring at 39:32 to give Amherst the 1-0 lead. Middlebury's Antonio Cosentino tied it in the opening minutes of the second stanza, but the Mammoths regained the lead on Jacob Dinzeo's marker at 53:38. The Panthers leveled the match again at 2-2 on Jaime Vega Espinosa's goal at 57:04 before Hoefer struck again at 67:43 for the final margin. Middlebury outshot the Mammoths 30-11, but Trey Sheppard and Spencer Kreitzer combined for nine saves in the Amherst net. With the win, Amherst (8-3-5) extended its unbeaten streak to 10 straight matches. Middlebury falls to 10-2-3, suffering its second loss in as many games after going 10-0-3.

No. 2 Williams def. No. 7 Wesleyan, 1-0 | Box Score
Nick Appleton scored in the 74th minute to lead No. 2 Williams past No. 7 Wesleyan, 1-0, in a NESCAC Quarterfinal at Cole Field. Appleton broke a scoreless tie at 73:31 and Williams goalie Kai Darrell made seven saves, including five in the second stanza, to complete the shutout. Wesleyan took 17 shots to Williams' 15. Cardinal goalie Simon Rebstock made eight saves in defeat. Williams improved to 11-2-2 while Wesleyan falls to 7-5-4.

No. 6 Hamilton def. No. 3 Bowdoin, 2-1 | Box Score
Troy Miller scored twice in the final 15 minutes, rallying No. 6 Hamilton to a 2-1 win at No. 3 Bowdoin in a NESCAC Quarterfinal at Pickard Field. Patrick Brady gave Bowdoin a 1-0 lead at 10:49, finishing a Jack Banks assist. The Polar Bears held the lead until Miller tied the match at 75:38 and netted the game-winner at the 87:45 mark. Hamilton outshot Bowdoin 18-13 and had six corner kicks. Oliver King made three saves for Bowdoin while Tobin Walsh was credited with one stop for the Continentals. Hamilton (7-4-4), which also beat the Polar Bears, 2-1, on Oct. 17, reaches the semifinals for the first time since 2018.

No. 5 Tufts tied No. 4 Conn. College (TUF adv. PKs, 5-3) | Box Score
Defending champion Tufts won a penalty-kick shootout, 5-3, to advance past No. 4 Conn. College in the NESCAC Quarterfinal after the teams played to a 1-1 draw. Will Nicholas scored at 4:07 for the fifth-seeded Jumbos. Tufts maintained the 1-0 lead until the 87th minute when Marco Perugini equalized for the Camels on a penalty kick. Conn. College outshot Tufts 25-4, but Tufts goalie Nikola Antic made seven saves over 110 minutes. In the shootout, Ben Pensky, Ben Brown, William Cornog, Ben Ortman and Gianluca Fallone all scored for Tufts. The Jumbos improve to 9-3-4 while Conn. College drops to 10-2-4 on the season.