LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. (November 7, 2024) – The University of South Florida women's soccer team returned to the Premier Sports Complex in Lakewood Ranch for the American Athletic Conference semifinal against East Carolina. The Bulls and Pirates battled for 110 minutes to a draw, 1-1. ECU would advance on penalty kicks, 5-3.
 
The First half was a scoreless battle. USF held ECU to zero shots on goal for the opening stanza.
 
The Bulls got on the board first in the 56th minute. Gentiana Fetaj ripped a shot just outside the six-yard box, but an ECU defender blocked the shot. Anna Sutter was there for the rebound and rocketed a shot into the upper 90 for the match's first goal.
 
The Pirates tied it in the 83rd minute on a Sydney Schnell goal.
 
The match remained 1-1 and went to extra time. Neither team could score the golden goal, and the match headed to penalty kicks. East Carolina would advance with a 5-3 mark in penalty kicks.
 
Notable
· Anna Sutter tallied her ninth goal of the season.
 
Next Up
South Florida's season might not be over. The Bulls could receive an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. USF is ranked 45 in the latest RPI rankings and could find a spot into the 64-team field.

About South Florida 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 2024 season will be the first with Chris Brown at the helm. He spent the last 17 seasons as the associate head coach. Brown helped lead the Bulls to three AAC regular season titles, three AAC Tournament titles, and eight NCAA Tournament appearances – winning a conference title every year from 2017-21 while making five straight NCAA appearances during that period. Brown helped lead the Bulls to their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance in 2010, a program-record 16 wins and program-best NCAA Tournament third-round appearance in 2019, both conference regular season and tournament titles in 2020, and a string of 10 straight seasons with 10 or more wins (2012-21). Brown has helped lead the Bulls to every NCAA appearance in program history, including two appearances in the second round, and three AAC Championship Game appearances.
 
As associate head coach, he mentored the program's first All-American and recent USF Athletic Hall of Fame inductee Evelyne Viens, who went on to earn three total All-America honors and an Olympic gold medal with the Canadian National Team at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo. Goalie Sydney Martinez (2020) and forward Sydny Nasello (2020 and 2021) also earned All-America honors and were among the Bulls that have earned a total of eight AAC Offensive Player of the Year, AAC Midfielder of the Year, AAC Defensive Player of the Year or AAC Goalkeeper of the Year honors. Players he has coached hold every program's individual record and most, if not all, of the top 10 marks in every category.
 
– #GoBulls –