Setting The Scene
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007
Location: Akron, Ohio
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. Eastern
Stadium: Lee Jackson Field
Tickets: 888-99-AKRON
USF Game Notes
The Game
On Wednesday night, head Coach George Kiefer will lead the University of South Florida men's soccer team into the Second Round of the 2007 NCAA Men's Soccer Championship as the Bulls kick off against the Akron Zips at 7:30 p.m. at Lee Jackson Field in Ohio.
View the Game
Fans can get FREE sideline-to-sideline radio coverage of the 2007 NCAA Men's Soccer game by logging on to Akron's website at GoZips.com. Fans can also watch the game on Gametracker.
USF vs. Akron ? Round Two
The Bulls and Zips have met only once, which was on Nov. 23, 2001 in the First Round of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship. USF was victorious in Tampa that game, earning the 2-1 win, and moving on to face Penn State (L, 1-0, 3ot) in the tournament.
Bulls Unbeaten By Mid-America Conference
USF is 4-0-1 against teams in the MAC, earning victories over Akron (2001), Bowling Green (1988) and Western Michigan (1984), and going 1-0-1 against Northern Illinois(w-1986, t-1991).
Anatol Familiar With Akron
USF assistant coach Ryan Anatol should be familiar with the Zips after serving as an assistant coach for Akron from 2003-05. While at Akron, Anatol helped the Zips compile a 28-10-5 record, winning the Mid-American Conference (MAC) title in 2004 and earn back-to-back NCAA berths.
Anatol is a 2002 grad of USF who played four seasons for the Bulls, acting as the team's co-captain in 2000. During his career at USF, the Bulls won Conference USA Championships in 1997 and 1998 and competed in the NCAA Tournament both seasons.
A Little Bit About Akron
The Zips won both the 2007 MAC regular-season and conference championships, and had an RPI of 12 to aid in securing an automatic berth and First Round bye in the NCAA Championship. The Zips were 9-0-2 at home this season and are 27-2-2 at Lee Jackson Field since 2004.
Only Five Remain
After seven made the tournament, only five BIG EAST men's soccer teams remain in the NCAA Championship. Three teams, Connecticut, Notre Dame and West Virginia have yet to play a game in the tournament after earning national seeds and a First Round bye. Wednesday matchups for those schools are as follows: Connecticut vs. Vermont, Notre Dame vs. Oakland and West Virginia vs. Virginia.
USF and Louisville advanced after victories in the opening round, as the Bulls beat Colgate 2-1 and the Cardinals outlasted Duke 1-0. DePaul lost to Bradley and Old Dominion beat Providence to end the seasons for those two conference schools.
Bulls Move Into Second Round
USF has equaled its 2005 Second Round appearance in the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship, but looks to be only the second team in USF history to move into the Third Round of the tournament. In 2005 the Bulls were eliminated by Virginia on PKs (6-7) after tying with the Cavaliers 4-4 through double-overtime.
USF's only Third Round appearance came in 1997 when Coach David Christiansen beat FIU (3-1), and St. John's (2-1) in the tournament, but lost to Indiana (6-0) to end the season.
Tops In Stats
As a team, USF is 17th in the country in scoring offense, tallying 39 goals in 20 games (1.95 gpg). The Bulls are 23rd in won-lost-tied percentage, posting a .70 mark.
Individually Jordan Seabrook is tied for second nationally with teammate Kevon Neaves for recording three assists in a singe game. Seabrook's three spot came against American on Sept. 15 and Neaves' assists in triplicate were against Cincinnati on Oct. 24.
Simon Schoendorf is second in assists per game (.65) and 32nd in points per game (1.35) while Kevon Neaves is close behind at 33rd in points with a 1.33 per game average and 10th in assists with .53 per game.
USF Not To Be Outdone
USF has outscored its opponents 38-18 this season, and 21-5 in the first period. The Bulls also outshot their opponents 122-75 in the first period and 15-6 in overtime.
Kiefer in Control
Head Coach George Kiefer is 63-37-13 overall and 2-0-1 in the NCAA Tournament while at USF. In 2005 his team beat Stetson 3-0, but was eliminated by Virginia on PKs (6-7) after tying the game 4-4.
Career Years
Midfielder Kevon Neaves, who scored 15 points over his first two seasons at USF, has surpassed his season-high total in points by recording 20 this season. Neaves also recorded his career game-highs in goals (2) and points (5) in the 5-2 win over UCF to begin the year.
Simon Schoendorf has tied his season-high in goals (7) and eclipsed his season assist total of seven, notching 13 helpers this season. Goalkeeper Diego Restrepo notched his career-high in saves with seven against No. 15 USC on 9/8. Jordan Seabrook has tied his season-high in assists (8) this season. He now has 19 career helpers.
Francisco Aristeguieta recorded his first-career goal and assist this season, as did Bernardo Anor (7g, 2a), Luke Magill (1g, 1a), Armante Marshall (1g, 2a), Andre Mittoo (2g, 1a) and Tony Taylor (4g, 1a). Joris Claessens and Javed Mohammed each tallied his first career assist this season.
