TAMPA (August 23rd, 2023) – South Florida men’s soccer travels to Seattle, Wash. for its campaign opener at No. 6/3 Washington on Thursday, August 24 at 10:30 p.m. ET. The matchup will air live on the Pac-12 Washington network.
SETTING THE STAGE
USF is 39-16-4 in all-time season openers and 5-5-3 in the last 13 lid lifters. Head Coach Bob Butehorn enters his seventh season at the helm of the program and has a starting record of 2-3-1.
SOUTH FLORIDA-WASHINGTON SERIES
The Bulls trail the Huskies, 2-0, in the all-time series which spans back to 2014. The most recent meeting occurred last season, which resulted in a 3-0 victory for Washington on Sept. 9, 2022. Thursday marks the first-ever meeting at Washington, as the previous pairings took place in Tampa Bay.
LAST TIME OUT
Across the trio of exhibition tune-ups, USF has outscored its opponents 12-2. The third and final scrimmage matchup resulted in a 2-0 shutout win against UCF. Segun Afolabi and Lovro Kostanjsek each netted a goal against the former conference foe.
BEST OF THE BULLS
South Florida returns its team-leading scorer, Oscar Resano, who netted six goals in 2022.
Ajmeer Spengler contributed 12 points last year, composed of five goals and two assists.
Shion Soga earned 2023 AAC preseason honors and led the squad with three assists (two goals) across the last campaign.
NEW BULLS IN TOWN
10 new faces join the Bulls this fall:
Dagur Hafthorsson, Fr., Reykjavik, Iceland, Club FH
Pedro Faife, Fr., Miami, Fla., Inter Miami FC
Tyler Richardson, Fr., Jacksonville, Fla., Armada FC
Davis Scharfeld, Fr., Windermere, Fla, Orlando City/Florida Rush
Mikhail Keise, Fr., Parkland, Fla., Inter Miami FC
Jalen Anderson, Gr., Hamden, Conn., UNC Wilmington
Marco Astorga, Jr., El Paso, Texas, Azusa Pacific
Richard Thompson, Jr., Montego Bay, Jamaica, WilingtonU
Max Wilkins, Gr., Bluffton, S.C., Georgia St.
Jorge Ortega, Jr., Tijuana, Mexico, Eastern Florida St
SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
Washington returns plenty of experience, with 27 returners including All-Pac-12 First Team selections Kalani Kossa-Rienzi and Christian Soto. The Huskies finished the 2022 Campaign with a record of 15-2-3. Their season concluded with a 3-1 loss to Creighton in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
TICKETS
Fans can purchase men’s soccer tickets by calling 1-800-GoBulls or at USFBullsTix.com.
WATCH THE BULLS
All of South Florida’s home regular season matches will once again be streamed live on the ESPN+ platform. Subscriptions for the ESPN+ app is $9.99 monthly or $99.99 annually and can be packaged with Hulu and Disney+ streaming services. A step-by-step guide for subscribing to ESPN+ is located here.
Matches will also be broadcast live on USF Bulls Unlimited, with Darek Sharp on the call. Bulls Unlimited is available via the free Tune In app (search “Bulls Unlimited”) and provides static-free quality whether you’re listening on your streaming device, laptop, or desktop.
ABOUT USF MEN’S SOCCER
To stay up-to-date on the latest USF Men’s Soccer news, follow the Bulls on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram).
USF Men’s Soccer competed in the school’s first-ever intercollegiate athletic contest on Sept. 25, 1965, beating Florida Southern 4-3. Since then, the oldest program on campus has built a winning tradition, claiming 14 conference championships and making 22 NCAA Tournament appearances, including 3 trips to the elite eight.
The program also has a strong reputation within the professional game and boasts 30 MLS draft picks. Notable alumni include two-time MLS Golden Boot winner Jeff Cunningham, USA 1994 World Cup star Roy Wegerle, and 2013 MLS Cup winner Dom Dwyer.
The Bulls have reached the NCAA Tournament 13 times over the past 22 seasons.
– #GoBulls –
