2015 Atlantic Sun Conference BracketJACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The North Florida men's soccer team will host its first ever Atlantic Sun Conference Championship game Saturday night against USC Upstate at Hodges Stadium. The second-seeded Ospreys find themselves in their third-straight A-Sun title game and are seeking their first ever bid to the NCAA College Cup.
Game Notes NCAA Bid: The winner of Saturday night's contest will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA College Cup next week. In the program's 25-year history North Florida has never been to the big dance. Since reclassifying to Division I, USC Upstate has not made the NCAA Tournament and only qualified for the A-Sun Tournament twice. As a member of the Peach Belt Conference the Spartans participated in the NCAA Division II tournament in 2006
Regionally Ranked: The Ospreys have been listed in every NSCAA Southeast Regional Ranking since Oct. 6. On Monday they garnered their highest ranking, seventh after a 2-1 OT victory over Lipscomb in last week's A-Sun Semifinal.
The Road to the Ship: The Atlantic Sun Conference semifinals were two of the most exciting games in league history. The Ospreys were vaulted into the league championship on
Helge Pietschmann's goal in the 109
th minute against Lipscomb last Saturday. The double overtime goal was headed by Pietschmann after his penalty kick attempt was saved. An equally thrilling game occurred in Fort Myers where USC Upstate upset top-seeded FGCU in overtime. The Spartans trailed three times in the contest and Michelangelo Dovidio's golden goal just seven minutes into the first overtime clinched their first A-Sun Title game appearance.
Third Time is a Charm: North Florida is making its third-straight appearance in the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship game. The Ospreys have been notorious for late postseason runs the past two seasons as the 5
th seed in 2013 and the 4
th seed in 2014. In both seasons the Ospreys knocked off the No. 1 seed (FGCU in 2013 and Lipscomb in 2014).
Last Time Out: In the regular season finale, North Florida clinched a share of its first ever Regular Season Championship with a 2-0 win over USC Upstate on Senior Night.
All-Time Series: The regular season win helped narrow the gap in the all-time series as the Ospreys now trail 11-8-1. The two schools have meet four times in the postseason with the Spartans winning two of the three. The Ospreys eliminated the Spartans last year, with a 5-0 in in the first round. In the last three meetings, North Florida has outscored USC Upstate, 10-0.
About USC Upstate: The Spartans possess the country's leading scorer in freshman Gordon Wild who last week registered his 14
th goal of the season. The Spartans logged 190 minutes of soccer in two days last weekend in Fort Myers after two overtime victories. In that span they tallied seven goals, more than they scored in the month of October. Only the Ospreys (8 goals in 2014) and Campbell (10 in 2008) have scored more goals in two games since 2007.
