USF Athletics

Bulls Open Highly Anticipated Season With Marquee Matchups at Home

August 21, 2019

SEASON-OPENING MATCHUPS: USF vs. Auburn (7 p.m. Thursday), USF vs. Florida (6 p.m. Sunday) | Game Notes
LOCATION: Corbett Stadium, Tampa
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TICKETS: USFBullsTix.com


By TOM ZEBOLD
USF Senior Writer

TAMPA, AUG. 21, 2019 – Ranked No. 18/14 in the United Soccer Coaches/Top Drawer Soccer polls and picked as The American's preseason favorite, USF will be under the national spotlight throughout the 2019 regular season that starts with numerous marquee matchups.

Corbett Stadium is the place to catch the Bulls' highly anticipated opener against Auburn on Thursday at 7 p.m. USF wraps up its first week of competition with another huge home test against Florida on Sunday at 6 p.m.

This season, the Bulls will take on three top-25 opponents from 2018, four others who received votes and five NCAA tournament teams, including Ohio State on Sunday, Sept. 1 at Corbett Stadium. USF will wrap up its eight-game nonconference slate with two opponents that advanced to at least the second round of the 2018 NCAA tournament – Wake Forest (road game on Sept. 15) and Texas Tech (Sept. 21 at Corbett Stadium).

Facing tough foes on the regular is all by design for USF, which has made four NCAA tournament appearances in the past five years. The Bulls have advanced to the NCAA second round in each of the past two seasons and this year the goal is to keep a good thing going much longer.

"You stretch yourself all season long, so that when you arrive in postseason play, you're never facing an opponent that hasn't stretched you that hard. You're always in familiar territory," head coach Denise Schilte-Brown said. "If you don't do this now, then you can go into the NCAAs saying, 'Have we played somebody that good before? Have we played somebody that does that before?'"

'National Championship-Caliber Team'
Head coach Denise Schilte-Brown recently told Bay area radio personality Rock Riley the Bulls have a "national championship-caliber team" this season.

Schilte-Brown has numerous reasons for optimism and 10 of them are returning starters from USF's 2018 conference champion squad that led the nation in scoring offense (2.84 goals per game) and outscored opponents, 54-18. Goal celebrations continued this preseason with a 6-0 win at Stetson (Aug. 13) and a 2-0 victory over North Texas in exhibition contests.

Leading the attack this regular season will be senior forward Evelyne Viens (L'Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec, Canada) who finished tops in the nation in points (2.47) and goals (1.05) per game in 2018. Last week, Viens was named The American's Preseason Offensive Player of the Year for the third time in her career and was joined on the preseason all-conference first team by senior midfielder Andrea Hauksdottir (Kopavogur, Iceland).

Both Viens and Hauksdottir earned national attention for the Bulls this preseason by being named to the 2019 Women's MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List.

Senior-Led Bulls Poured Into 'The Grind'
After capturing the AAC regular season crown in 2018, USF was selected to repeat as the league champion in The American's 2019 preseason coaches' poll.

Fresh off their 15-win campaign last fall, the Bulls are flattered by the preseason praise, but they're staying focused on what's in front of them.

"It's the beginning of the year and you don't want to celebrate anything. It's encouraging, but right now you just don't take a moment to take a deep breath," Schilte-Brown said. "It's a grind and everything has to be poured into it right now. If you're stopping to think nostalgically or about how far you've come, I think you can trip."

Keeping the Bulls up for the challenges ahead and even-keeled are a group of seniors who've impressed the coaching staff each day this preseason – Viens, Hauksdottir, forward/defender Aubrey Megrath (West Palm Beach, Fla.) along with defenders Rebekah Anderson (Valrico, Fla.) and Brianna Blethen (Bradenton, Fla.).

"The veterans that you expected to be awesome this year have risen to the occasion," Schilte-Brown said. "They're seniors and they're here to play. They might be the ones that are really responsible for this increase in level and that's exciting."

Aside from pushing the team to a new tier of preseason production, USF's seniors are making sure they're leaders younger Bulls will gladly follow to the postseason.

"Now that they're here and the weight is on their shoulders, they're just doing a great job of opening up to the team, making themselves vulnerable and allowing people to see their personalities," Schilte-Brown said. "They laugh a lot. They share a lot, yet they're serious and competitive. Right now, we just have great chemistry."

USF Adds Lots of Young Talent
In addition to five seniors and 14 total upperclassmen, USF replenished its young talent pool with 13 newcomers (11 freshmen, two sophomores).

One new Bull to really keep an eye on this season is freshman defender Lucy Roberts (Cheshire, England), who was the youngest player in Liverpool history to make her debut for the Liverpool WSL team. Roberts recently competed for England at the UEFA Women's U18 championship.

"She just has the presence of a center back, where it's calm, confident and she's sure of herself," Schilte-Brown said. "Her passing is sure. Her decisions are decisive and she's blessed with athleticism."

Talented newcomers have helped a very motivated USF team keep a consistent work rate this preseason during highly competitive practices.

"Trying to decide who is going to play and who is going to travel has reached another level for us," Schilte-Brown said. "What a great problem for a coach to have."

Scouting the Opening Opponents
First up for the Bulls on Thursday is Auburn, which is coming off its fifth straight NCAA tournament appearance and 16th double-digit win season under head coach Karen Hoppa. 

The Tigers returns 79 percent of their goals, 85 percent of their assists and 81 percent of their points from 2018. Last season, senior midfielder Bri Folds led the team in goals (9) and points (25) on the way to All-America honors. Folds is on the SEC Soccer Preseason Watch List with two teammates – senior forward Treva Aycock and junior defender Alyssa Malonson.

Florida, USF's opponent on Sunday, will look to get back to its usual high level of success after the Gators saw their 15-season NCAA tournament appearance streak snapped in 2018.

Like Auburn, Florida received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Poll and has three players on the SEC Soccer Preseason Watch List – senior defender Julia Lester, redshirt senior midfielder Parker Roberts and junior forward Deanne Rose. The Gators have welcomed 12 newcomers to their roster and begin the season with a game at Florida Atlantic on Friday night.
 
About USF Women's Soccer
Be sure to follow USF women's soccer on social media (Twitter / Instagram/Facebook) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information. 
 
The USF women's soccer team has posted seven consecutive seasons of 10-plus wins and nine in the last 10 years under head coach Denise Schilte-Brown. The Bulls made their first NCAA tournament appearance in 2010 and returned in 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018.