All Roads Lead to Houston: Bulls Ready For NCAAs

TAMPA, NOV. 14, 2016 – The NCAA men's soccer tournament bracket was revealed Monday and the University of South Florida will host the first round for the second consecutive season. The Bulls will welcome FGCU Thursday at 7 p.m.

The NCAA Tournament features 48 teams and 24 automatic bids were granted to conference champions. USF received one of the remaining spots.

For the 20th time in program history, the Bulls will appear in the NCAA Tournament, a mark that is unmatched by any other program at USF. Under head coach George Kiefer, USF has made two elite-eight appearances, and has made the NCAA Tournament 10 times in the past 11 seasons. Kiefer has amassed a 6-8-4 record in the tournament, and has taken the Bulls to at least the second round in all but two appearances.

The American regular season champions will meet FGCU (14-3-2, 4-1-1 ASUN) for the 10th time in program history, the second time this season, and hold a 4-3-1 advantage in the all-time series. The Bulls are 2-1-1 against the Eagles in Tampa.

USF (10-6-3, 6-1-0 The American) tied Tulsa in the American Athletic Conference final Sunday, but the Hurricane advance as the league champion after a 4-2 penalty kick decision. The Bulls' have not lost a game since Oct. 11 when they dropped a 3-2 decision in Fort Myers to FGCU.

Ticket information will be made posted at GoUSFBulls.com as soon as it is made available.

The Bulls concluded the regular season as The American regular season title winners. The Bulls finished the season with a 9-6-2 overall record and a 6-1-0 mark in the American Athletic Conference.

Head coach George Kiefer was named the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) East Region Coach of the Year in 2015 and led USF to its eighth NCAA tournament appearance in the past nine years and earned the No. 2 ranking in the NSCAA East Region. The Bulls posted double-digit wins for the ninth time under Kiefer in 14 seasons and went undefeated at home during the regular season.

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