Bulls To Clash with Mustangs Saturday Night
Matchup:USF Bulls (4-5-1) vs. SMU Mustangs (5-4-1)
Date:Saturday Oct. 6, 2018
Time:8 p.m.
Location:Dallas, Texas // Westcott Field
Watch: American Digital Network
Live Stats: SMUMustangs.com
Twitter Updates:@USFMSoc
TAMPA, Fla., Oct 5, 2018 --USF men's soccer, tied for first in the American Athletic Conference rankings, heads to Dallas to take on conference rival SMU on Saturday night at 8 p.m. for their third conference matchup of the season.
Last Timeout
The Bulls (4-5-1, 1-0-1 AAC) head into the match following their 3-2 thrilling double overtime win against Tulsa (3-6-1) on Saturday night. USF defeated Tulsa behind
Tomasz Skublak's (Ontario, Canada) brace including his game winning golden goal. The Bulls other goal on the night came from
Josue Monge (Philadelphia, PA.), his first of the season. USF also defeated Stetson 3-1 last week, behind goals from freshmen
Henrique Gallina (Atibaia, Brazil) and Felipe Baptisa (Pembroke Pines, Fla.), and
Avionne Flanagan (Baltimore). Flanagan scored the equalizer, Gallina knocked in the game-winner and Baptista added the insurance goal for the Bulls.
USF is undefeated in American Athletic Conference play through two matches, and has not dropped a match since the Bulls visited FGCU on Sept. 15, winning two of their last three and tying Connecticut in the AAC opener. USF is tied for first with UConn, the only teams without a loss in conference play, in the AAC standings, with four points and 1-0-1 records.
Goalkeeper
Harrison Devenish-Meares leads the conference in saves and saves per game with 38 and 3.8, respectively.
Honored Bulls
Both Gallina and Skublak were named to the American Honor Roll following their game-winning performances last week. Gallina scored the game-winning goal over Stetson in the midweek game while Skublak had a brace including the game-winner in double overtime against Tulsa on Saturday.
Quotable by Bob Butehorn
"We're very excited for the matchup versus SMU this weekend," head coach
Bob Butehorn said. "It should be a great game.
The Opponent
SMU comes into the match against USF off the heels of a 3-1 victory over Stetson. The Mustangs are currently 5-4-1, 1-1-0 AAC, on the season.
SMU hold a high-octane attack as they possess six players with two or more goals. Leading goal scorer Emil Cuello has scored three goals in 10 games, while recording five assists. The Bulls will have to stay focused late in the game, as four Mustangs claim to game-winning goals this season.
The Mustang's goalkeeper, Grant Makela, has started eight of nine matches, and has recorded a total of 28 saves in those appearances.
Notable
- In last season's match against SMU, the Bulls tied 0-0 at home on Oct 29, 2017.
- A win against SMU on Saturday would put the Bulls on a three-game winning streak. A win or draw would also extend the Bulls' unbeaten streak to four games, or six of its last seven games.
- The last time the Bulls traveled to play the Mustangs, USF won 1-0 in double overtime on Oct. 29, 2016.
- Harrison Devenish-Meares leads the conference in saves and saves per game with 38 and 3.8, respectively.
- Alex Zis is tied for second in the conference in assists per game with four helpers in 10 games. He is also fourth in the conference in points with 10 points in 10 games.
Follow the Match
The match will be live streamed on
the American Digital Network on Facebook,and live stats will be available on
SMUMustangs.com.Fans can also follow live updates on
Twitter. Additionally, fans can attend the match in Dallas for free.
Up Next
The Bulls return home to take on their conference rival the Temple Owls on Friday Oct 12, at 7 p.m.
About USF Men's Soccer
The Bulls concluded the 2017 regular season with a 6-6-4 overall record and finished fifth in the American Athletic Conference with a 3-2-2 mark. Head Coach Bob Butehorn leads the Bulls in his second season at the helm in 2018.
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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#GoBulls –
