TAMPA, Fla. – The Auburn soccer program opens its 27th season of existence on the road as the Tigers are set to take on No. 14 South Florida Thursday at 6 p.m. CT at Corbett Stadium.
Thursday's contest will be streamed online through South Florida's YouTube channel.
Starting XI
Head coach Karen Hoppa begins her 21st season at the helm of the Auburn soccer program and 27th season overall as a head coach as the team opens the season at USF.
Auburn is coming off the program's fifth straight appearance in the NCAA
Tournament and its 16th NCAA appearance in the last 18 seasons. The Tigers are one of 13 teams in the country to make five straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
Auburn was picked to finish seventh by the SEC coaches in the annual preseason poll.
Seniors Treva Aycock and Bri Folds and junior Alyssa Malonson were named to the SEC Soccer Preseason Watch List this week. All three honorees earned All-SEC recognition following the 2018 regular season.
Auburn is 17-6-3 all-time in season openers and is 5-3-2 in season openers on the road.
Thursday marks the third meeting between the Tigers and Bulls with each team having won a contest in the previous matchups. South Florida won a NCAA Tournament contests in Tallahassee in 2010 before Auburn defeated the No. 18 Bulls in Auburn a season ago.
Auburn's 2019 roster consists of 23 players, including eight freshmen, seven sophomores, four juniors and four seniors.
The Tigers return 33 of 42 goals scored (79 percent), 39 of 46 assists (85 percent) and 105 of 130 points (81 percent) from last year's team.
Auburn's 39 assists returning from last season are tied for the most in the league. The team's 33 goals and 105 points returning are also the fourth most in the SEC.
Hoppa has led the Tigers to 17 winning seasons in 20 years on The Plains, including 15 seasons with 10 or more wins. She notched her 300th career win with a 1-0 victory at Missouri (Oct. 14) last year.
Scouting South Florida
South Florida enters the 2019 season ranked No. 14 by Top Drawer Soccer and No. 18 by United Soccer Coaches.
The Bulls went 15-4 a season ago and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before losing to eventual national champion Florida State.
South Florida was picked in the preseason to win the American Athletic Conference, and a pair of players in Evelyne Vines and Andrea Hauksdottir were named to the Hermann Trophy Award Preseason Watch List.
Player to Watch: Bri Folds
Entering her senior season, Folds ranks in the top 10 in program history in assists (22), shots (178) and game-winning goals (nine). The Lakeland, Florida, native also ranks just outside the top 10 in career goals (18) and points (58). She is the first Auburn player to return from an All-American campaign since 2016 and has been named to the 2019 Hermann Trophy Award Preseason Watch List.