GREENVILLE, S.C. -- The Western Michigan men's soccer team continues its journey in the NCAA Tournament with another program first opponent on Sunday afternoon.

LAST TIME OUT
The Western Michigan University men's soccer team advanced past the first round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight year in a 1-0 shutout over the Clemson Tigers.

The first meeting in program history between the Broncos and Clemson went WMU's way in a scrappy 1-0 win on Thursday evening. For the second straight match, graduate defender Mathieu Beauvain scored the Brown and Gold's lone goal in the victory. Redshirt junior goalkeeper Alex Lindewirth recorded his third shutout of the year, making five saves.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Broncos make their fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2025, a record for the program who only made its first appearance in the tournament in 2003. WMU has advanced out of the first round in every tournament appearance except one, when the team lost 4-1 to then UW-Milwaukee.

Last season in NCAAs the Brown and Gold hosted their first round match, beating the SIUE Cougars 5-1 in the snow. But Western Michigan ran into the first-seeded Ohio State Buckeyes, ending its run in the second round with a close 2-1 loss.

Overall the Broncos are 7-4-1 in the tournament after Thursday's win and have made the Sweet Sixteen three times in program history. WMU has only earned a bye in the NCAA Tournament once in 2017 where they hosted U Albany before exiting in the Sweet Sixteen to in-state rivals Michigan State. 

DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Through the postseason, the Broncos have found most of their offense from their defense. In four games across the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament and the NCAA Tournament, three of WMU's five goals have come from defenseman. The past two goals have come from graduate defender Mathieu Beauvain for his first two with the program. 

Junior defender Braxton Arpachinda has led the way in points for the Brown and Gold from the back line. Arpachinda has three points through three postseason matches after having to sit out Western Michigan's match against Clemson on Thursday. But the MVC Tournament MVP will be back on the pitch Sunday afternoon when the Broncos take on the Paladins. 

SERIES HISTORY
Similar to Thursday's match, this will be the first time in program history that the Brown and Gold face the Furman Paladins. Sunday's match will also be a first in program history for Western Michigan as the team has not played a current program in the Southern Conference. The two teams haven't played any common opponents in the 2025 season.

SCOUTING THE PALADINS
Furman comes into its first match of the NCAA Tournament with the nation's longest winning streak at eight matches and the third longest unbeaten streak in the country at 11 games. The Paladins earned a trip to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year by claiming the Southern Conference's automatic bid with a 1-0, double overtime victory over 19^th-ranked UNC Greensboro in the SoCon Championship Match last week. 

Furman is led on the pitch by SoCon Player of the Year and Hermann Trophy Watch List member junior Diego Hernandez. The midfielder has netted nine goals and added eight assists this season for the Paladins. Hernandez is closely followed by sophomore forward Wilfer Bustamante with seven goals and seven assists in 19 matches this season. Furman has one of the most lethal offenses in the country ranking fourth in both goals (45) and assists (50) while ranking second nationally in total points (140).