DATE/TIME: Sunday, Nov. 22 | 1 p.m.
OPPONENT: Boston College (10-7-1)
EVENT: NCAA tournament second round
LOCATION: Corbett Stadium | Tampa
FOLLOW: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
TOURNAMENT BRACKET
TICKETS: $6 general admission (youth and adult); $1 for college students
PURCHASE TICKETS
By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer
TAMPA, NOV. 20, 2015 – No. 15 USF men's soccer has put itself in the driver's seat for a deep NCAA tournament run with a special collection of players at the wheel.
Team captains Spasoje Stefanovic and Brendan Hines-Ike, along with Nazeem Bartman, Lindo Mfeka and Graham Smith make up a leadership group that has helped the Bulls achieve incredible feats this season.
USF (11-5-3) earned a first-round bye and will host Boston College in the second round of the NCAA tournament 1 p.m. Sunday at Corbett Stadium.
“I think you could take this leadership group and as they mature and get older, you could put this leadership group in charge of a major company and that company would do well,” head coach George Kiefer said. “That's what makes that group tick; it's far more than soccer. It's more about managing people and getting the most out of everybody.”
USF's leadership group meets regularly with the coaching staff to discuss important topics and it provides direction to the rest of the team at key moments in the season.
“Every one of those guys had votes toward being a captain. People on the team did feel that they could be good leaders,” Kiefer said.
At the heart of the leadership group are the Bulls' captains that were elected by their peers after the coaches provided the team with a short list of candidates.
“I want to hear who the players say the best leaders are,” Kiefer said. “Sometimes it's a perfect match and sometimes it's not. In this case it was.”
Stefanovic has grown accustomed to directing the team as the Bulls' reliable keeper. The junior from Serbia earned all-conference honors after posting eight shutouts and his 0.81 goals against average ranks second in The American.
Hines-Ike has earned a ton of respect from his teammates since arriving at USF in the spring. The senior center back has directed a back line that's helped the Bulls ranked 25th nationally in goals against average.
“On the back line, three of four guys are in a different spot or new,” Kiefer said. “Hines has really done a great job of stabilizing that back four and getting it very good from where it was Aug. 15 to now.”
The rest of the leadership has had a big hand in getting USF back to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2013.
Bartman, a junior forward, leads the team in points (21), goals (8) and assists (5). Joining Bartman on the all-conference first team was Mfeka, a junior midfielder, who is third on the team with 10 points. Smith, a junior midfielder, has helped the Bulls register their most wins since 2011 in his second season with the program.
Kiefer has relied on his leadership group to keep the team poised for success at the most important time of the year. USF is looking for its seventh trip to the Sweet 16 and third appearance in the Elite Eight.
“There are only 16 teams that can say they're playing at home on Sunday. That's an accomplishment in itself and if you talk to that leadership group, they understand the only thing we're guaranteed is Sunday,” Kiefer said. “I think they'll have the locker room understanding that 16 teams will move on and 16 teams will be knocked out.”
Bulls Bits
- Boston College earned a trip to Tampa by defeating Vermont, 1-0, in the first round of the NCAA tournament on Thursday night. Boston College (10-7-1) is making its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2012 after getting an at-large bid.
- Tickets are going fast for Sunday's game and USF students are encouraged to get to Corbett Stadium early with the first 250 getting in for free. General admission seats are $6 for adults and youth. Students with a valid college ID get in for just $1. Head to USFBullsTix.com to purchase general admission seats. Discounted seats for college students can be picked up at the USF box office at the front of Corbett Stadium on game day.
- USF has lost just once in 12 games at Corbett Stadium this season. The Bulls have outscored opponents, 21-8, at home in 2015.
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 Kieferhas 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.
