The Bulldogs open NCAA Tournament play Thursday night, hosting West Virginia in a first-round match. The kick at the Sellick Bowl is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be streamed live through the BIG EAST Digital Network on YouTube.

This is Butler's ninth NCAA Tournament appearance and the third time that the Bulldogs have received an at-large berth. The Bulldogs missed being part of the 2018 NCAA Tournament field after back-to-back berths in 2016 and 2017.

Butler is 11-6-2 on the season and receiving votes in the most recent United Soccer Coaches national poll. Butler is ranked No. 24 nationally in the NCAA's RPI ratings.

West Virginia won the MAC Tournament title Sunday, defeating Bowling Green. The Mountaineers are 9-8-2 on the season and made a run through the MAC Tournament after finishing 0-4-1 in conference play during the regular season. This will be the first meeting between the two programs.

Butler is one of four BIG EAST programs to make the 48-team field, joining No. 3 seed Georgetown, No. 16 St. John's and Providence. Like the Bulldogs, Providence will host a first-round match-up, while the Hoyas and Red Storm receive byes into the second round.

The winner of Thursday's match will travel to Marshall for a Sunday match with the No. 11 overall seed. Marshall receives an opening round bye. Butler has played Marshall in each of the past two seasons. On Sept. 6, the Bulldogs traveled to Huntington, W.V., and dropped a 2-1 result to the Thundering Herd. Butler defeated Marshall, 4-3 in overtime, in 2018 in Indianapolis.
 
ALL-BIG EAST: Wilmer Cabrera, Jr. has been named 2019 BIG EAST Freshman of the Year by the conference's head coaches. The Bulldogs also had four players selected for All-BIG EAST honors as the postseason honors were announced Nov. 11.

Cabrera, Jr. earned second team All-BIG EAST honors, while seniors Brandon Guhl and Jared Timmer, along with sophomore Jack Haywood, were selected to the third team.

Cabrera, Jr. becomes the second Bulldog to win BIG EAST Freshman of the Year honors, joining David Goldsmith, who earned the recognition in Butler's first season as a member of the conference.

POSTSEASON PLAY: Butler advanced to the semifinals of the BIG EAST Tournament, playing to a draw with No. 3 Georgetown before the Hoyas advanced on penalty kicks. The Bulldogs, seeded fifth in the field, opened the tournament with a 1-0 win at fourth-seeded Creighton in the quarterfinals.

Brandon Guhl and Rhys Myers were named to the 2019 BIG EAST All-Tournament Team.

RECENTLY IN NCAA PLAY: Butler matched the best NCAA Tournament result in program history with a run to the Round of 16 in the 2017 Tournament. The Bulldogs opened up with a 2-0 win at home over Lipscomb in the first round of the tournament before traveling to No. 16 seed VCU. Butler defeated the Rams, 3-2. Butler fell in the Round of 16 at No. 1 seed Wake Forest by a score of 2-0.

In 2016, after winning the BIG EAST Tournament, the Bulldogs hosted SIUE in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The teams played to a 0-0 (2OT) draw before SIUE advanced in penalty kicks.

This is Butler's third NCAA Tournament appearance under coach Paul Snape, who took over the program beginning with the 2011 season.

TOUGH SLATE: Butler played six matches this season against teams who made the 2019 NCAA Tournament field. The Bulldogs went 2-3-1 in those contests, which included wins over No. 5 seed Indiana and Providence. Butler lost matches to No. 3 seed Georgetown, No. 11 seed Marshall, and No. 16 seed St. John's, while also tying Georgetown in the BIG EAST Tournament.

COMMON FOES: While not meeting West Virginia during the 2019 regular season, the Bulldogs did face three of the six teams who make up the Mid-American Conference. Butler defeated Western Michigan, 2-1, Aug. 30; lost 2-1 in double overtime at SIUE Sept. 17; and defeated Akron, 1-0 in double overtime, Oct. 8. West Virginia went 2-2-1 against those same teams in 2019, picking up wins against SIUE and Western Michigan in the MAC Tournament.
 
OF NOTE:

• Butler has been part of seven overtime contests this season, and only two of those games have ended in a draw. The Bulldogs have a 3-2-2 record in those games.
• Butler is 7-2-1 at home in 2019.
• Butler keeper Gabriel Gjergji has six shutouts on the season and his 4.37 saves per game are fourth in the BIG EAST.
• Brandon Guhl is third in the BIG EAST in both goals (nine) and points (21). Eleven of those points came in his eight regular season conference matches.
• Wilmer Cabrera, Jr. has eight goals and 19 points on the season, which are tied for fourth and fifth in the BIG EAST respectively.
• Guhl now has 29 career goals in his three seasons in a Butler uniform (he spent his freshman campaign at SMU). Those 29 goals are tied for 16^th in the NCAA among active players, and the mark is eighth in Butler program history.
• Jack Haywood is tied for the BIG EAST lead with nine assists. That mark is Top 10 nationally.
• Cabrera, Jr.'s six game-winning goals lead the BIG EAST lead and tied for third in the NCAA.
• Ten Bulldogs have found the net in 2019; 13 have scored points during the campaign.
• The Oct. 23 loss at Marquette ended a five-match unbeaten streak (4-0-1) for Butler. The Bulldogs had not lost since Sept. 28.
• The Oct. 19 win at Seton Hall was Butler's first four-goal game since a 4-3 (OT) win over Marshall Sept. 26, 2018.
• After scoring the first two goals of his career in the Oct. 4 win over Providence, Brendan Hicks earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors Oct. 7.
• The Bulldogs played three consecutive Top 10 opponents earlier this season. That included BIG EAST losses to Georgetown and St. John's, sandwiched around a 2-1 win over (then) No. 5 Indiana.
• Butler limited Wisconsin to only four shots in the win Sept. 12; it marked the fewest shots allowed by Butler since an Oct. 12, 2012 match against Richmond when the Spiders were also held to just four shots.