Men’s Soccer Picked to Finish First in Division

[Brad]

Courtesy USF SID Office

Men’s Soccer Picked to Finish First in the Red Division

Junior Rodrigo Hidalgo and sophomores Jordan Seabrook and Yohance Marshall Named to the Preseason All-Conference Team

Providence, R.I. (August 10, 2006) – The BIG EAST office announced today that the University of South Florida men’s soccer team has been chosen to finish first in the Red Division in the 2006 BIG EAST Preseason Poll (as selected by the league’s head coaches). Comprised of 16 teams, the BIG EAST is broken up into two divisions of eight teams (Red and Blue).  Junior Rodrigo Hidalgo and sophomores Jordan Seabrook and Yohance Marshall have also been recognized by the conference by being named to the Preseason All-Conference Team.

USF made a strong impression in its 2005 rookie year in the league. Compiling a record of 13-6-2 overall, and a league-best 9-2-0 mark within the conference, USF made a run for the league championship title, falling in the final game to Connecticut, 1-0. The Bulls earned nine first-place votes and 106 total points in this year’s preseason poll. Holding a national ranking as high as No. 16, USF advanced to the second round of the 2005 NCAA Tournament before being knocked out on penalty kicks by Virginia.

Having lost only one senior, USF returns three Preseason All-BIG EAST Team members: Hidalgo, Seabrook and Marshall. The Bulls have the most players of any league school on the preseason team.

Hidalgo earned NSCAA All-South Regional honors last season.  A first team All-BIG EAST selection in 2005, Hidalgo finished second in the nation in assists per game (0.75), leading the conference with 15 assists. Second on the team in points (29), Hidalgo registered a career-best seven goals and 15 assists this past season. A two-time Soccer America National Team of the Week honoree, Hidalgo recorded four multiple-assist outings in 2005, including a career-high three assists versus Jacksonville (Sept. 4). He was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 31) after recording two goals and two assists to lead the Bulls to their first-ever division title. Entering the season, Hidalgo was honored by the BIG EAST Conference by being named to preseason all-conference team. Hidalgo registered a goal and three assists during the 2005 NCAA Tournament, guiding the Bulls to their first appearance in the second round since 2001.

Seabrook, a “College Soccer News” Freshman All-American and NSCAA All-South Region selection, earned second team All-BIG EAST honors in 2005, becoming the first freshman to lead the Bulls in scoring since Hunter West (14g, 3a, 31 pts. in 2002). His 36 points are the most produced by any player at USF over the past five seasons. A three-time BIG EAST Rookie of the Week, Seabrook led all freshman players in scoring in the conference. Seabrook registered three goals and three assists during USF’s postseason play in 2005, helping lead the Bulls to the BIG EAST Tournament Finals and the team’s first berth in the NCAA Tournament in four seasons. USF finished its first season in BIG EAST action with a league-best 9-2 record while earning the Red Division title in part to Seabrook’s contributions. He was named to the “College Soccer News” National Team of the Week (Oct. 3) for a five-point performance versus Villanova. Seabrook notched four multiple-goal games this past season, including his first-ever hat trick in USF’s 6-3 win over Jacksonville (Sept. 4).

Marshall was a third team All-BIG EAST Selection in 2005. He earned BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week honors (Oct. 17), registered two goals and an assists for five points in 2005, while anchoring a USF defense which held five BIG EAST opponents to 10 goals or less. Marshall appeared in all 21 games for the Bulls, scoring two goals and notching one assist during his freshman season. He scored the equalizer in the Bulls’ 2-1 overtime win versus Cincinnati (Oct. 29) and the game-winner in USF’s 4-1 win over West Virginia (Nov. 5) in the BIG EAST quarterfinals. Marshall scored his first-career point with an assist in USF’s 4-2 victory over Villanova (Sept. 25).

BIG EAST play begins on September 8 when all 16 schools will face off against conference opponents. As the largest Division I men’s soccer conference in the nation, the 16 teams have to play a schedule that would meet the needs of all of the league schools. A round-robin rotational 11-game schedule within two divisions of eight teams make up conference play. Each team plays seven opponents within its division and four opponents from the other division.

The 2006 BIG EAST Men's Soccer Championship will feature the top 12 of the league’s 16 teams. The top six teams in each division, seeded by conference point total, qualify for the Conference Championship. The top two teams in each division earn a first-round bye to the quarterfinals. The first round and quarterfinal games will be held on the campuses of the higher seeded teams. First round games will be held on Oct. 25 or 26, with the quarterfinals following on Oct. 28 or 29.

Rutgers University will serve as host for the semifinals (Nov. 3) and the championship game (Nov. 5).  Selection and seeding are based on regular season conference records. The champion receives the league's automatic bid to the 48-team NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship. For the first time the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Soccer Championships will be played in conjunction with each other, moving the men’s championship a week earlier.

College Sports Television (CSTV) will air both semifinal games live. The championship game will be broadcast live on select BIG EAST regional outlets.  

The Bulls will face the University of Tampa for the “Rowdies’ Cup” on Saturday, Aug. 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the USF Soccer Stadium. USF will kick off the regular 2006 season versus in-state rival FIU on Friday, Aug. 25 in Miami. Game time is 8 p.m.

2006 BIG EAST Men's Soccer Preseason Poll

                                          BIG                       BIG EAST

Blue Division      Points      EAST      Overall         Finish

Connecticut (11)    109         7-3-1       16-3-2            1st

Notre Dame (5)      103         6-4-1       12-8-3        Tied 3rd

Seton Hall               79          6-3-2       13-4-3           2nd

Providence             58          3-3-4        7-4-9            6th

West Virginia           54          6-4-1       14-7-2        Tied 3rd

Georgetown           49          6-5-0       10-9-1           5th

Marquette              37          1-8-1       5-11-1           8th

Pittsburgh              23          2-9-0       3-12-1           7th

                                          BIG                            BIG

Red Division       Points      EAST      Overall         EAST

USF (9)                 106         9-2-0       13-6-2            1st

St. John's (7)         104         6-2-3       11-6-5           2nd

Cincinnati                77          6-3-2       10-7-2           3rd

Rutgers                  76          5-4-2        8-8-3            5th

Louisville                 56          2-7-2       5-11-2           7th

Villanova                 39          6-4-1        7-7-4            4th

Syracuse                36          3-7-1        7-8-4            6th

DePaul                   16          2-8-1       4-11-2           8th

(-) - Indicates first place votes

2006 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team

BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year

Omar Cummings, Sr., F, Cincinnati

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year

Julius James, Jr., D, Connecticut

BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year

Jason Landers, Jr., GK, St. John's

All-BIG EAST Preseason Team

Omar Cummings, Sr., F, Cincinnati

Greg Dalby, Sr., M, Notre Dame

Ian Etherington, Sr., M, Notre Dame

Eliseo Giusfredi, So., F, Seton Hall

David Guzman, Jr., M, Louisville

Rodrigo Hidalgo, Jr., F/M, USF

Julius James*, Jr., D, Connecticut

Gordon Kljestan, Sr., D/M, Seton Hall

Jason Landers, Jr., GK, St. John's

Yohance Marshall, So., D, USF

Jordan Seabrook, So., F, USF

O'Brian White, So., F, Connecticut

Andrew Wright, Jr., M, West Virginia

* - unanimous selection; ^ - Due to a tie in voting, two extra members have been added to the team

[BULLfreak]

USF will win a Big East Title this year

[SRQ]

Congratulations Bullfreak!

re. soccer team; scoring phenom Hunter West hasn't even been factored in to the equation.  WOW!

When was the last time a USF team went into the season this highly respected?

[BULLfreak]

maybe a national title

[smazza]

give the coach a raise and extension

reward and keep the winners

[USFan]

give the coach a raise and extension

reward and keep the winners

They did.