Burnaby, BC - The Simon Fraser University men's soccer team is headed to Los Angeles, CA after the NCAA Selection Show revealed that the Clan are ranked fourth in the NCAA West Region meaning SFU will face fifth ranked Cal Baptist on
Thursday with the winner facing the host, number one ranked Cal-State Los Angeles on
Saturday.
"We are very excited to be back at the NCAA National Tournament," said Head Coach
Alan Koch. "California Baptist University are an excellent team and we look forward to playing them in LA."
The team will hold their final training session on Terry Fox Field on
Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. before departing for California.
It is the second consecutive year the NCAA Tournament will start in California for the Clan as SFU's 2012 run to the "Final Four" began in Hayward, CA.
SFU enters the tournament after winning their fourth straight Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championship, a title that was clinched on a double overtime goal by
Jovan Blagojevic (Coquitlam, BC) against the Seattle Pacific Falcons on November 2.
SPU is the only other GNAC team to reach the tournament this year as the Falcons were ranked sixth.
To advance past the first two rounds of the tournament the Clan will have to get through the other two conference champions in the NCAA's West Region as Cal State L.A. won the California Collegiate Athletic Association title and Cal-Baptist won the PacWest.
"This is the time of year that our student-athletes work so hard to get to. We will embrace the opportunity and are excited to represent our university and our conference in the post-season," finished Koch.
The tournament will begin for the Clan on
Thursday at 7:00 p.m.
