In only the third D-I Men's Soccer national championship game to ever go into penalty kicks, Virginia finally broke a scoreless tie with top-seeded and undefeated Akron with a 3-2 edge in PK's, giving the Cavs their sixth-ever title and first since 1994. For Akron, a year of unprecedented success ends in cruel irony, with the Zips ending the year without a true loss (although a loss in PK's in the championship game counts as a loss), having not given up a single goal in the entirety of the NCAA Tournament.

Jason Yeisley, the senior Penn State forward who endured two separate knee injuries to return and lead the Nittany Lions to a berth and first-round bye in this year's NCAA Tournament, has been named the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award recipient. Given yearly to the senior athlete that best exeplifies excellence in the field, in the classroom and community, Yeisley fits the bill perfectly.

A management major with a 3.61 GPA in PSU's prestigious Smeal College of Business, Yeisley scored 21 points on the year, helping to make the Nittany Lions one of the most dangerous -- and most surprising -- teams in the country. He's set to graduate in December.

Technically, Akron isn't perfect anymore. But the Zips will probably take it.

Officially, Akron's win in penalty kicks over North Carolina in Friday's national semifinals in Cary, N.C., goes into the books as a tie, ending the Zips' NCAA single-season record-tying consecutive win streak at 23 and bringing Akron's record to 23-0-1.

But that'll be 23-0-1 in the national championship game, where the top-seeded Zips will meet second-seeded Virginia, overtime winners over Wake Forest on Friday night. It's the second-ever title appearance for Akron, and the first since 1997 for the Cavaliers, who managed to stand tallest in an ACC and NCAA Tournament that just don't forgive lapses.

As it is, we have the top team in the country -- by far the most dominant club in D-I Men's Soccer this year -- meeting the top team in the nation's premier conference. And it all starts at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Watch it live on ESPN2!

Going into Friday's College Cup semis, Akron's run of 23 straight wins was a feat matched only once before. And for Zips coach Caleb Porter, the feeling's all too familiar.