Six NCAA Tournament Teams Highlight 2016 Tulsa Men’s Soccer Schedule

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Six NCAA Tournament teams from the 2015 season highlight the 2016 Tulsa men's soccer schedule, as announced today by Head Coach Tom McIntosh. The Golden Hurricane schedule features eight teams that posted double-digit wins and four teams that concluded the season ranked in the NSCAA top-25 poll a year ago.

"Every year we try to play a high-quality, non-conference schedule because I think that is how you get better as a team and how you prepare for conference play," McIntosh said. "If we have success in the non-conference schedule it can help our RPI and boost the RPI of the league."

"We are excited about playing this schedule and opening up against Cal-State Northridge, which should be an excellent game," McIntosh added. "We are also excited about hosting Akron, Creighton and Santa Clara, and continuing those series'. I am pleased with the overall schedule and think it will be a great season."

TU finished the 2015 campaign with an 8-6-7 overall mark and a 3-3-2 record in The American, winning the conference tournament title and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Championship. Tulsa tallied 36 goals and four clean sheets, and had four players named to the all-conference team, two to the all-rookie team and five to the all-tournament team.

The Golden Hurricane will begin the season on the road at CSUN (Aug. 26), which posted an 8-8-3 overall record last year. The Matadors have a 3-0 lead in the all-time series with TU, including a 2-1 overtime win in 2014.

Tulsa returns home to host UMKC (Aug. 31) in the friendly confines of the Hurricane Soccer and Track Stadium. The Kangaroos recorded six wins last season, but fell to TU, 3-2, in overtime at home. The Hurricane has an 11-1-2 advantage in the series.

TU then travels to Saint Louis (Sept. 4), before facing UAB (Sept. 9) and Stetson (Sept. 11) in the UAB Soccer for a Cure Classic. The Billikens posted eight wins last year, including a 1-0 double-overtime win over Tulsa to start the season, while UAB and Stetson each had five victories. SLU increased their lead in the series with Tulsa to 9-4, while the Hurricane has a 10-3-1 advantage over the Blazers, and this will be the first meeting with the Hatters.

Akron and Santa Clara come to town on Sept. 16 and Sept. 19, respectively. The Zips, which finished the season ranked No. 3 in the final NSCAA poll, tallied an 18-3-3 overall record, captured the Mid-America Championship and advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Championship a year ago. The Broncos had 11 wins, won the West Coast Conference Championship and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Championship last season.

Tulsa begins play in The American at SMU (Sept. 24) and then returns home to host Missouri State (Sept. 27) to close out the month of September. The Mustangs had 16 wins, won The American regular season championship, advanced to the third round of the NCAA Championship and finished the year ranked No. 13 in the final NSCAA poll, while the Bears had 11 wins last season.

The Hurricane starts October with a home game against UConn (Oct. 1) and then a road swing to USF (Oct. 7). The Huskies had 10 wins, while the Bulls posted 11 victories last season, and both teams advanced to the second round of the NCAA Championship. USF also concluded the year ranked No. 18 in the final NSCAA poll.

TU will then host a three-game home stand against Creighton (Oct. 11), UCF (Oct. 15) and Oral Roberts (Oct. 18). The Bluejays had a 19-4 overall record, finished the season ranked No. 6 in the final NSCAA poll and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Championship last year, while the Knights and Golden Eagles each had seven wins last season.

A pair of road contests against Temple (Oct. 22) and Cincinnati (Oct. 29) are up next for the Hurricane. The Owls had 10 wins last year, while the Bearcats totaled seven victories. Tulsa has won both meetings against Temple, and is 2-0-1 in the series with Cincinnati.

TU will close out the regular season against Memphis (Nov. 4) at the Hurricane Stadium. The Tigers struggled last season, posting just three wins, as the Golden Hurricane took a 5-4-3 lead in the all-time series.

The No. 1 seed in American Athletic Conference play will host The American Championship. Semifinals will be played on Friday, Nov. 11, while the Championship is set for Sunday, Nov. 13.

"The vast majority of the teams in the American Athletic Conference were very young last year, us included, so when you look at the conference it will be very balanced," McIntosh said. "We know it will be very competitive, especially with only four teams making the conference tournament, which will make each game vitally important. We will have to be very focused to achieve our goals this season."

Six NCAA Tournament Teams Highlight 2016 Tulsa Men’s Soccer Schedule

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