Louisville Hosts USF in NCAA Tournament Thursday Night
November 18, 2019 | Men's Soccer
The Cardinals earned an NCAA Tournament bid for the fourth year in-a-row
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville men's soccer team received an at-large bid to the 2019 NCAA Championship and will host USF on Thursday, November 21 at 7:30 p.m. inside Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium. Â
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"I'm excited, there is no question about it," head coach John Michael Hayden said. "Being one of the top teams in the country, that's what this program is expected to do. I'm happy for this group that we have this opportunity moving forward. It should be a really good ride."
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Louisville qualifies for the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight year and has made the NCAA Tournament 12 of the last 13 seasons. The Cards have advanced to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Championship five times in the last nine seasons. Ten ACC squads were selected to the NCAA Tournament, which marks the most bids ever for one conference in the men's soccer tournament.
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The Cardinals enter the NCAA Championship with an 8-7-2 overall record. After its ACC Tournament game, the UofL ranked 23rd in the NCAA's RPI and had the fourth toughest schedule in Division I. Louisville has four wins over nationally ranked opponents, including handing third-seeded Georgetown its only loss of the year. Overall, the Cards have played six of the 16 tournament seeds, and 11 teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament, including an exhibition win over No. 5 seed Indiana.
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The two teams have already met this season, with USF coming out on top 2-0 on their home field back on September 9. It will be the 27th meeting all-time between the two programs, with USF holding a 15-7-4 advantage.
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USF also earned an at-large bid after finishing the season 11-6-1, falling to SMU 2-1 in double overtime in the American Athletic Conference semifinals. The Bulls had four players earn All-Conference honors:
Avionne Flanagan (First Team), Javain Brown (First Team), Adrian Billhardt (Second Team), and Salvatore Mazzaferro (All-Rookie).
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Tickets are on-sale now at GoCards.com/NCAAMSoccer. Tickets are $10 for reserved chairback seating and $5 for general admission berm tickets. Groups of 10 or more are eligible for $3 tickets by calling the Louisville Athletics Ticket Office at (502) 852-5151. The first 100 University of Louisville students get in free with a valid student ID, paid for by Louisville Athletics.
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For the latest on Louisville men's soccer, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's social media accounts on Twitter @UofLMensSoccer, Facebook /UofLMensSoccer, and Instagram @UofLMensSoccer.
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"I'm happy for this group that we have this opportunity moving forward. It should be a really good ride."
— head coach John Michael Hayden
"I'm excited, there is no question about it," head coach John Michael Hayden said. "Being one of the top teams in the country, that's what this program is expected to do. I'm happy for this group that we have this opportunity moving forward. It should be a really good ride."
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Louisville qualifies for the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight year and has made the NCAA Tournament 12 of the last 13 seasons. The Cards have advanced to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Championship five times in the last nine seasons. Ten ACC squads were selected to the NCAA Tournament, which marks the most bids ever for one conference in the men's soccer tournament.
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The Cardinals enter the NCAA Championship with an 8-7-2 overall record. After its ACC Tournament game, the UofL ranked 23rd in the NCAA's RPI and had the fourth toughest schedule in Division I. Louisville has four wins over nationally ranked opponents, including handing third-seeded Georgetown its only loss of the year. Overall, the Cards have played six of the 16 tournament seeds, and 11 teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament, including an exhibition win over No. 5 seed Indiana.
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The two teams have already met this season, with USF coming out on top 2-0 on their home field back on September 9. It will be the 27th meeting all-time between the two programs, with USF holding a 15-7-4 advantage.
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USF also earned an at-large bid after finishing the season 11-6-1, falling to SMU 2-1 in double overtime in the American Athletic Conference semifinals. The Bulls had four players earn All-Conference honors:
Avionne Flanagan (First Team), Javain Brown (First Team), Adrian Billhardt (Second Team), and Salvatore Mazzaferro (All-Rookie).
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Tickets are on-sale now at GoCards.com/NCAAMSoccer. Tickets are $10 for reserved chairback seating and $5 for general admission berm tickets. Groups of 10 or more are eligible for $3 tickets by calling the Louisville Athletics Ticket Office at (502) 852-5151. The first 100 University of Louisville students get in free with a valid student ID, paid for by Louisville Athletics.
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For the latest on Louisville men's soccer, visit GoCards.com, or follow the team's social media accounts on Twitter @UofLMensSoccer, Facebook /UofLMensSoccer, and Instagram @UofLMensSoccer.
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