Bulls Begin Regular Season Against Lipscomb
TAMPA, Aug. 27, 2017 – The University of South Florida men's soccer team will host Lipscomb Monday night in its highly-anticipated season opener. The Bulls welcome the Bison to Corbett Stadium for 7 p.m. non-conference tilt.
Monday's match will be broadcasted on Facebook Live and tickets can be purchased online at usfbullstix.com. Student admission is free with a valid photo I.D.
The Bulls begin their 2017 campaign under first year head coach
Bob Butehorn. Butehorn took over the program in December and looks to lead USF back to the NCAA tournament for the ninth time in the last ten seasons. The defending regular season champion, USF, enters its fifth season as a member of the American Athletic Conference.
USF returns 11 players from its NCAA tournament team a year ago, including preseason all-conference honoree
Ricardo Gomez (Gainesville, Ga.). Gomez finished his junior year with five points and five assists.
The Opponent
Lipscomb enters Monday's match with a 1-0 record after defeating Niagara 3-2 in its season opener Aug. 25. The Bison boast plenty of experience with 15 junior and seniors and eight returning starters. Lipscomb never trailed against Niagara and Ivan Alvarado led the charge with three points. Alvarado, a preseason All-ASUN honoree turned in one goal and one assist, both in the second half.
USF will face Lipscomb for the first time in program history.
Notables
- Since 2006, USF is 8-1-2 in season openers, and boasts a 5-0-2 record when starting the season at home.
- USF has not lost a home season opener since 2005. The Bulls dropped a 1-0 decision to FIU Sept. 2, 2005.
- USF returns three starters from last season's NCAA tournament team.
- The Bulls went 3-0 during the preseason against Sunshine State Conference (DII) competition.
- The Bulls finished 2016 with a 10-6-4 record and a 6-1-0 mark in The American. USF claimed the regular season title, its second league title in four years.
Up Next
The Bulls travel to Bloomington, Ill. for two top-25 showdowns. For the Adidas/IU Credit Union Classic. USF will open the tournament against No. 25 Butler Sept. 1 at 5 p.m. before taking on No. 7 Indiana Sept. 3 at 8 p.m.
On Dec. 18 Bob Butehorn was appointed the head coach the USF men's soccer program. A member of the University of Tampa's 1981 national championship team and a three-time conference coach of the year, Butehorn previously led Florida Gulf Coast University's men's soccer program to six conference regular season championships, four NCAA Tournament appearances and Top 25 rankings in five seasons since 2010.
The Bulls concluded the season as The American regular season champions and advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Bulls finished the season with a 10-6-4 overall record and a 6-1-0 mark in the American Athletic Conference.
Follow the men's soccer team on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.
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