DATE/TIME: Friday, Nov. 13 | 7 p.m.
OPPONENT: UConn (8-5-5)
LOCATION: Corbett Stadium | Tampa
CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
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By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, NOV.10, 2015 – Corbett Stadium is the site for the final two rounds of the American Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Championship and the No. 14 Bulls are ready to play for it all at home.
Host and second-seeded USF looks to reserve a spot in the championship game when it takes on third-seeded UConn on Friday at 7 p.m. Head coach George Kiefer's Bulls have gone 9-0-2 at home this season.
Friday's first semifinal will feature top-seeded SMU and fourth-seeded Tulsa at 4:30 p.m. Tickets for each game are $5 apiece and conference students get in free with a school ID. Tickets can be purchased at the USF box office or by calling 1-800-GoBulls.
USF has advanced to The American championship game in each of the past two years and captured the title in 2013 by topping the Huskies in a penalty kick shootout. The Bulls edged UConn in the conference semifinals last season before falling in the championship to Tulsa in penalty kicks.
USF (11-4-3) and UConn (8-5-5) have met twice this season and Nazeem Bartman's goal in the 60th minute made the difference in the Bulls' 1-0 home win over the Huskies on Sept. 26. UConn responded with a 2-1 overtime win over USF in the regular season finale for both teams on Oct. 31 in Storrs, Conn.
Junior Melvin Becket provided the offense the last time out to help the Bulls advance to the conference semifinals with a 1-0 win over Memphis on Nov. 7 at Corbett Stadium. USF has outscored opponents, 20-6, at Corbett Stadium this season with six shutouts to its credit.
Sunday's championship is set for a 2 p.m. start at Corbett Stadium. The game will be televised nationally on ESPNU. Fans out of town can catch both semifinal games on the American Digital Network HERE.
Bulls Bits
- The Bulls have allowed multiple goals in a game just once at Corbett Stadium this season.
- USF remained at No. 14 in this week's NSCAA Poll. The American has two teams in the top 25 with SMU ranking eighth nationally. SMU and USF are first and second in the NSCAA East Region rankings.
- USF ranks 21st nationally with a 0.75 goals against average and UConn is 17th (0.72). The Bulls lead The American and rank 24th nationally with a shutout percentage of 0.44.
The men's soccer program has been one of the most successful on campus over the years, advancing to seven NCAA tournaments in the last eight seasons. The Bulls return 13 letterwinners and five starters from 2014 on top of bringing in the third-ranked signing class according to College Soccer News. They won the inaugural American Athletic Conference Championship in 2013 and head coach George Kiefer has also led the Bulls to two Elite Eight appearances and four conference/division titles in his 13 seasons as the head man. Follow the men's soccer team on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. Purchase tickets HERE.
