ASHEVILLE, N.C. — UNC Asheville will open the Big South men’s soccer tournament at home this week, and the Bulldogs drew a chance to settle a score along the way.
The league office released the six-team bracket on Sunday, Nov. 1. UNC Asheville landed the No. 3 seed and will host No. 6 USC Upstate at Greenwood Field on Wednesday, Nov. 4, with kickoff at 2 p.m.
The Spartans have already won in Asheville this fall. Upstate took the regular-season matchup 2-1 on Oct. 24, so Wednesday doubles as a rematch with a season on the line for the loser.
The Bulldogs come in at 9-5-2 overall and 3-3-1 against league teams. Their 10 conference points left them level with Winthrop, but UNC Asheville earned the higher seed because it beat the Eagles 3-0 when the two met during the regular season.
Upstate finished with nine points, tied with Longwood. The Lancers took the No. 5 spot through their own head-to-head result, which pushed the Spartans to the last place in the field.
High Point won the regular-season title and holds the top seed, with Gardner-Webb second. Whoever wins in Asheville moves on to a semifinal at Gardner-Webb on Sunday, Nov. 8. In the other first-round match, Winthrop hosts Longwood on Wednesday night for the right to visit High Point.
The championship match is set for Saturday, Nov. 14, at the home field of the highest seed still alive. The tournament winner claims the Big South’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament, which means Upstate would need three straight wins to get there.
UNC Asheville plans to stream video and post live stats for Wednesday’s match on its athletics website.
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