USF Men’s Soccer Returns Home to Face Ohio State on Tuesday

The Bulls look for their fourth straight win and their best start since 2012 when they face the Buckeyes 

TAMPA (SEPT. 16, 2019) – USF returns to Corbett Stadium on Tuesday, Sept. 17, when it faces Ohio State on Salute to Service night. First touch is slated for 7 p.m. and the first 100 fans receive a USF camo bandana. The Bulls look for their fourth straight win after a convincing 3-1 win over Lipscomb in Nashville, Tenn., on Sept. 13.

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USF BULLS (3-1)

Last Game: Sept. 13 at Lipscomb, W, 3-1

Next Game: Sept. 24 at North Florida, 7 p.m.

Head Coach: Bob Butehorn

Career Record: 146-114-34 (17th season)

At USF: 16-16-6 (Third season)

OHIO STATE (4-1)

Last Game: Sept. 13 at Bowling Green, W, 2-1

Next Game: Sept. 21 vs. Penn State, 7 p.m.

Head Coach: Brian Maisonneuve

Career Record: 5-16-2 (Second season)

At Ohio State: Same

QUICK HITS

– A win over Lipscomb would mark the Bulls’ best start – 4-1 – since the 2012 season when they also started the season 4-1 … In addition, it would also be their first four-match winning streak since 2016, when they defeated San Francisco (2-0), North Florida (1-0), Buffalo (3-0) and UCF (2-1), consecutively.

– Tuesday’s home match against Ohio State is the third of four at Corbett Stadium that USF will play during the month of September out of six total contests … After Tuesday, the Bulls will face UConn (Sept. 27) in their conference opener.

– Four USF players earned American Athletic Conference honors this week … Javain Brown was named Defensive Player of the Week, Harrison Devenish-Meares was named Goalkeeper of the Week and Victor Claudel was tabbed Rookie of the Week … Emilio Ycaza was named to the AAC honor roll.

– Harrison Devenish-Meares has been the mainstay in net for the Bulls, playing all 360 minutes and recording 12 saves and has posted a 1.0 goals against average … He logged his fourth career shutout against Louisville on Sept. 9.

– Claudel and Ycaza share the team lead in scoring with four points apiece, each scoring two goals on the year … Trey Jackson and Jonathan Rosales are tied for third with three points on a goal and an assist.

SCOUTING OHIO STATE

– Ohio State comes into Tuesday’s match with a 4-1 record after turning in just a 1-15-2 record in 2018 … The Buckeyes have won their last four straight matches after dropping their season opener, 4-3, to Cal State Northridge on Aug. 30.

– Jack Holland leads the team in scoring with nine points (3g, 3a) while Devyn Etling has seven points (3g, 1a) … Four other players have three and two points, respectively on the year.

– Parker Siegfried has been in goal all season for the Buckeyes, recording 10 saves and posting a 1.39 goals against average with two shutouts … His two clean sheets came against Illinois Chicago (Sept. 1) and Dayton (1-0).

THE SERIES VS. THE BUCKEYES

– USF and Ohio State have met just twice before with the Bulls holding a 2-0 series lead … The two sides first met on Sept. 16, 2010 with USF winning, 2-1, and then against last season on, Sept. 7, with the Green and Gold pulling out a hard fought 1-0 victory.

LAST TIME OUT

– In a town known for its country music USF had Lipscomb singing the blues, on Sept. 13, as the Bulls handed the Bisons a 3-1 loss in Nashville, Tenn.

– Emilio Ycaza put the match out of reach with back-to-back goals within 25 seconds of each other in the 55th minute … It was the first multi-goal match of his collegiate career … His first goal of the night, the eventual game-winner, came off a pass from Trey Jackson while his second score was served up by Stephen Rudderham.

– Jonathan Rosales got the scoring started with his first goal of the year when he took a pass from Avionne Flanagan and beat Lipscomb goalkeeper Michael Sibley in the 35th minute of play.

QUARTET EARNS AAC WEEKLY HONORS

– The USF men’s soccer team had a quartet of standouts earn weekly American Athletic Conference honors this week … Javain Brown was named Defensive Player of the Week, Harrison Devenish-Meares was named Goalkeeper of the Week and Victor Claudel was tabbed Rookie of the Week. Emilio Ycaza was named to the AAC honor roll … The Bulls, 3-1 on the year, posted a 2-0 record last week with wins over No. 5 Louisville (2-0) and Lipscomb (3-1).

– It’s the second straight week that a USF player was honored … Claudel was named to the honor roll on Sept. 9.

BULLS CLOSE PRESEASON WITH 3-0 EXHIBITION RECORD

– USF closed out its 2019 preseason schedule with a 3-0 record, capped off by a 1-0 win over the University of Tampa in the 41st annual Rowdies Cup at Corbett Stadium on Aug. 24 … Freshman forward Victor Claudel netted the game-winner on a penalty kick in the 85’.

– The Bulls also defeated Eastern Florida State College (2-0) on Aug. 17 and Eckerd College (1-0) on Aug. 21 in their first two exhibition matches.

BILLHARDT & FLANAGAN EARN PRESEASON AAC HONORS

– USF men’s soccer standouts Avionne Flanagan and Adrian Billhardt and have been named to the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Preseason All-Conference Team.

– Flanagan finished 2018 with Second Team All-AAC honors … He played in all 17 matches for the Bulls and started in 16 … He scored two goals on the year off 15 shots … His goal against Florida Atlantic marked his first game-winner and was a crucial turning point for USF, which posted a 3-1-2 record in its next six matches.

– Billhardt earned preseason all-conference honors after recording four points on four assists in 2018 … A great technical player, he is creative and extremely dangerous one-on-one with a big left foot … Billhardt was also recognized during his freshman season, in 2017, when he was named First Team All-AAC and to the All-Rookie Team.

BULLS TABBED FOURTH IN AAC PRESEASON POLL

– USF was voted by the league’s head coaches to finish fourth in this year’s preseason American Athletic Conference Coaches poll … The Bulls trail only UCF, SMU and UConn … Temple, Memphis, Tulsa and Cincinnati round out the bottom four.

UP NEXT

– Following Tuesday’s match, the Bulls will get a week off to prepare for their next contest at North Florida on Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. … USF will return to Corbett Stadium on Sept. 27 for its AAC opener against UConn at 7 p.m.

To purchase tickets for USF men’s soccer, or to purchase an Olympic Gold Pass which provides entry to all men’s soccer, women’s soccer and volleyball home contests in 2019, visit USFBullsTix.com or call 1-800-GO-BULLS. 

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