The UCF men’s soccer team earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Soccer Championship, and will host the Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles in the first round of the tournament. It will be the second straight year that UCF has hosted a first-round matchup.
This is only the second time since the program moved to Division I that UCF has earned an at-large berth in the NCAA tournament. The Knights (11-5-3) will be looking to avenge their loss against the Eagles from earlier in the season. FGCU (12-5-2) beat the Knights in September, 2-1, giving UCF its first loss of the season.
“The fact that we are hosting an NCAA game for the second-straight year speaks volumes about how far our program has come,” head coach Bryan Cunningham said in a press release from UCFathletics.com. “It is a huge honor for us to host a first-round game. It is great that we can reward our fans with another home game.”
The Knights finished their regular season with a home win against Marshall, moving to 10-4-3, and finishing as the third place team in Conference USA.
In the first round of the Conference-USA postseason tournament, UCF won an overtime thriller against Memphis, 4-3. UCF’s leading goal-scorer, McKauly Tulloch, had a career night against Memphis, scoring three goals and assisting on another goal. The teams split the series 1-1.
In the second round, the Knights moved on to face the top-seeded and No. 16 nationally ranked UAB Blazers. The Blazers scored 11 minutes into the match and held on to win 1-0. The Knights had the shot advantage in the game, but couldn’t get anything past goalie Carl Woszynski, who recorded 11 saves. UAB won both meetings this season 1-0.
Despite losing in the C-USA semifinals, the Knights now have another opportunity to end their season with a championship.
“I am really happy for our seniors,” Cunningham said in a press release from UCFathletics.com. “Our whole team has worked so hard, and it is great to have the chance to continue the season. The NCAA selection committee recognized our efforts, and we are all very excited.”
Last time UCF faced FGCU, the Knights had plenty of shots on goal, but FGCU goalkeeper Adam Glick, who was named A-Sun Defensive Player of the Year last season, made some great saves to help his team hold on for the win. Look for the Knights to keep Glick busy, and challenge him to make more great saves.
Game time for the match is set for 7 p.m. Thursday night at the UCF Soccer Complex. The winner will move on to face USF in Tampa on Sunday.
