After coming up short in the Colonial Athletic Association finals each of the last two years, the Delaware men’s soccer team was not going to let that heartbreak happen again.

The Blue Hens made sure of it Sunday afternoon.

After falling behind William & Mary early, the No. 2 seeded Hens tied the score almost immediately and then used a go-ahead goal by senior Jaime Martinez with 17:18 left in the first half to post a 2-1 victory over the Tribe to claim the CAA crown.

The win gave Delaware its first Colonial championship since 2011.

“I am thrilled for this group,” said 11th-year coach Ian Hennessy. “They are a terrific bunch of people and they have given so much to the school.

Overall they have had another terrific season and I particularly delighted that this talented senior class gets to lead the group to another NCAA appearance. It’s been a great weekend for the UD family.”

Delaware (12-7-1) heads to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in school history and for the first time since earning an at-large berth in 2012. The Hens will find out their first-round opponent when the 48-team field is announced today at 1 p.m. on ncaa.com.

The Hens, who lost three of their last four regular-season games, found the right magic at the CAA Tournament as they knocked off No. 6 seed Charleston 2-1 on Friday night before downing the fifth-seeded Tribe Sunday.

In the finals, Delaware held a slim 12-9 advantage in shots with goalkeeper Todd Morton posting four saves. The Tribe was able to hold Delaware All-American and two-time CAA Player of the Year Guillermo Delgado to just a single shot on goal.

“I’ve been waiting,” said Delgado, who led the Hens with 12 goals this season. “I’ve been here three times (in the finals) and another time in the semifinal. I’ve been working hard. I think this is the best feeling I could have playing college soccer.”

College basketball

MEN, Delaware 63, Bradley 49: The Blue Hens shut down Bradley in the opening half to build a big lead and was never seriously threatened in the second period.

Junior point guard Anthony Mosley led the Hens (2-0) with a game-high 16 points, while Devonne Pinkard contributed 14 points. Cazmon Hayes grabbed career-high 12 rebounds while Darian Bryant chipped in with eight points and nine boards for the Blue Hens, who dominated the glass for the second straight game with a 45-27 advantage.

Coach Martin Ingelsby is just the third UD coach since 1945 to win his first two games, joining Don Harnum (6-0 in 1971-72) and Mike Brey (2-0 in 1995-96)

WOMEN, Delaware 67, George Mason 51: After trailing by a point at halftime and surviving a blistering surge by the Patriots to open the second half, the Blue Hens pulled together and used a dominating final 13 minutes to win their season opener.

Junior forward Sadé Chatman scored a career-high 15 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and dished seven assists to lead the Blue Hens. Nicole Enabosi added 15 points and seven rebounds and junior forward Makeda Nicholas and freshman Bailey Kargo chipped in with 10 points each.

The Hens also turned the ball over just seven times, their lowest total since last November. Delaware was down 12 points at 38-26 just over three minutes into the second half.

But the Hens then outscored George Mason 21-8 over the the final quarter.

Field hockey

Pairings set for state semifinals: No. 10 Polytech will face third-seeded Delmar at 6 p.m. in the DIAA field hockey state semifinals on Tuesday at the University of Delaware’s Rullo  Stadium.

Top-seeded Padua will then take on No. 4 Tower Hill at 8 p.m. in the second semifinal at Rullo.

Tickets for the semifinals, which are good for both games, are $8 and can be purchased online at https://statechamps.com/DIAA.