Plymouth State Press Release:The Plymouth State University football team will travel to Brockport, N.Y. for the first round of the 2017 NCAA Division III Football Championship on Saturday. The Panthers (9-1) will face SUNY Brockport (10-0), winners of the Empire 8 Conference, at Bob Boozer Field with kick-off set for 12:00 p.m. PSU earned its first Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) title by finishing 7-1 in league play. The Panthers, who finished tied with Framingham State atop the league, earned the conference’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament by virtue of a 16-13 overtime win over the Rams on Oct. 14. Saturday’s game will mark the fifth NCAA Tournament appearance in program history and Plymouth State’s first since 2008. The Panthers also made appearances in 1995, 1994, and 1984. PSU is 1-4 all-time in the tournament, posting its sole win during the 1994 season. That fall the Panthers hosted the NCAA East Regional, topping Kings Point 19-18 in the first round, before falling to Ithaca in the national quarterfinal by a 22-7 margin. The 32-team tournament will conclude with the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, DIII football’s championship game, at Salem Stadium (Salem, Va.) on Dec. 15.