Florida Soccer Meets UCF Sunday in NCAA Second Round Action at Pressly Stadium
Saturday, November 15, 2008 | Soccer
No. 2 regional seed Florida (18-3-1, 11-0 SEC) plays host to UCF (14-5-3, 7-2-2 C-USA) in NCAA Championship Second Round action on Sunday, Nov. 16. Match time is set for 1 p.m. at the James G. Pressly Stadium. Tickets for Sunday's match are $7.00 for adults and $3.00 for children 12 and under, senior citizens and students. The first 200 UF students to show their GatorOne card are admitted free.
This is the second consecutive year that Florida has faced UCF in NCAA Championship Second Round action. In 2007, the two teams played to a scoreless tie and Florida advanced to the NCAA Round of 16 with a 4-3 advantage in penalty kicks. This is the fifth meeting between Florida and UCF in NCAA play since 2001. Florida has not registered a win versus UCF in the last two NCAA meetings, falling 3-2 in the 2004 NCAA First Round and tying 1-1 2OT in the 2007 second round. The Knights defeated Florida 1-0 to open UF's 2008 home season on Aug. 29.
Both teams came from behind Friday to earn NCAA First Round victories. Florida trailed California after the first four minutes, but a goal in each half by UF seniors Megan Kerns and Ameera Abdullah advanced Florida with a 2-1 win. The Knights scored three unanswered goals, including a pair of goals by junior Danielle Dos Santos, to take a 3-1 win over Miami in Friday's first round.
Both teams received one of the NCAA Championships' 34 at-large berths. The Gators lost 3-0 to Georgia in the SEC Tournament semifinal and did not receive the league's automatic NCAA berth (Tennessee claimed the berth with a 1-0 win over Georgia in the SEC Tournament final). Six SEC programs advanced to 2008 NCAA play, matching the league record set in 1998 and equaled in 2007. After Friday's NCAA First Round, only the two SEC teams playing host to NCAA play this weekend - Florida and Auburn - advanced to the NCAA Second Round. Two Conference USA teams earned 2008 NCAA berths, tournament champion Memphis and UCF, but the Knights are the only remaining team. UCF finished third in the 2008 C-USA standings with its 7-2-2 league record. The Atlantic Coast Conference led all leagues with eight teams in the tournament.
| NCAA Soccer Championship Information Gainesville, Fla. Site |
| Match Time: |
| Sunday, Nov. 16 |
| 1 p.m.: Florida vs. UCF |
| Tickets: |
| $7.00 adult |
| $3.00 children 12 & under, students and senior citizens |
| First 200 UF students with identification are admitted free |
| For more information, contact the UAA Ticket Office at (352) 375-4683, ext. 6800 or 1-800-34GATOR, ext. 6800 (state of Florida only) |
| Internet: |
| Live stats available on www.NCAASports.com; live audio, stats & streaming video for UF-UCF match available at www.GatorZone.com |
More than half of the opponents Florida faced in 2008 advanced to this year's NCAA bracket. Florida owns a pre-NCAA play record of 8-3-1 against teams in the 2008 tournament field with a win versus No. 2 seed Florida State (Sept. 7). The Gators opened the 2008 season with a 1-1 2OT tie at No. 4 seed Colorado. Florida also registered wins versus Auburn, Illinois, Kansas, LSU, South Carolina and Tennessee. Florida split in its two meetings with Georgia and lost to UCF and at Portland. UCF met five teams this season that advanced to the 2008 NCAA Championships and owns a regular-season record of 3-3 versus those teams. UCF posted wins at No. 2 seed Florida (Aug. 29), versus Illinois and at Memphis and lost at No. 2 seed Florida State, versus Kansas and to Memphis in C-USA Tournament semifinal action.
A pair of seniors leads the Gators this season. Kerns owns UF's season high totals for points (32) and goals (12) while Ameera Abdullah leads UF in assists (9) and is second in points (25). The Knight's leading scorer is Dos Santos with 21 points off of eight goals and five assists.
The Florida-UCF match can be heard live on www.GatorZone.com with Adam Shick and Matthew Stubbington covering the action. A complimentary viewing of the streaming video of the match is also available on GatorVision - just click on the GatorVision icon at www.GatorZone.com for further information.
