Nov. 19, 2007

IRVING, Texas - Conference USA regular season and tournament champion Tulsa received the No. 16 overall seed, while SMU was an at-large selection to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship, which starts this weekend at various sites around the country. Both teams will host their initial matches, with the Golden Hurricane earning a first-round bye in the 48-team bracket.

Tulsa (15-2-2) is riding a 10-game win streak and 14 straight matches without a loss (12-0-2) into the NCAA Championship. The Golden Hurricane defeated Florida International, 3-2, in yesterday's C-USA championship final to earn the conference's automatic bid. It will be TU's fourth appearance in the NCAA Championship and first since 2004. Tulsa will host the winner of Central Connecticut State-Harvard on Wednesday, Nov. 28.

The Mustangs (13-4-2) received an at-large bid as the nation's No. 5 team in the final NSCAA/adidas poll. SMU, which is making its 26th overall NCAA appearance and 14th in a row, will host Gonzaga in a first-round match on Saturday, Nov. 24 at 7 p.m. CST. With a win, SMU would play at No. 8 seed Creighton on Nov. 28.

SMU advanced to the 2005 College Cup before having their title run ended by eventual national champion Maryland. Coincidentally, the Mustangs were eliminated in last year's NCAA Tournament by UC-Santa Barbara, who won the 2006 national title. SMU also made the national semifinals in 2000, dropping a 2-0 decision to Connecticut. Overall, SMU is 29-21-4 (.574) in 54 NCAA matches.

This is the third straight year Conference USA has sent multiple teams to the NCAA Championship.

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