The 1948 UConn men’s soccer team won the first national championship in school history in any sport. It was 11 years before the NCAA sponsored a national soccer championship, so it was up to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) to declare a national champion. UConn sported a perfect 11-0 record for head coach John Squires, who later was inducted into the NSCAA Hall of Fame. The Huskies were led by four All-American players – Carlos Fetterolf, Stuart Johnson, Merritt Baldwin, and Norman Pratt. UConn started the season with an impressive win at Yale, which set the tone for a season that included victories against the likes of Dartmouth, Tufts, and UMass. The highlight came with a 3-2 win over Springfield College, which was the two-time defending national champion and had a 32-match win streak. The first NCAA Championship for a UConn team came in 1981 when the field hockey team took home the title as the finals were played in Storrs. It was also historic because it was the first-ever NCAA Championship played in a women’s sport. A few weeks later, the UConn men’s soccer team won the NCAA Championship, marking the first-ever NCAA title for the Huskies in a men’s sport. UConn has now won a total of 25 national championships… and counting.
UConn Firsts: First National Championship
The 1948 UConn men’s soccer team won the first national championship in school history in any sport