The NCAA released the brackets Monday for the 2005 men's soccer tournament, and Virginia (12-4-2) was awarded the No. 13 overall seed. The first 16 seeds receive first-round byes, so the Cavaliers' first tournament contest will be Nov. 22 at Klöckner Stadium against the winner of this weekend's Stetson-South Florida first-round matchup.
"I haven't really had a chance to digest the brackets yet," coach George Gelnovatch said during a Monday evening press conference at University Hall. "We're happy to have a first-round bye. That gives us more time to prepare. I'm also glad that we get to start off at home."
Virginia will not have played a game in 13 days when Tuesday's match kicks off. This long layoff is something that Gelnovatch is unaccustomed to as this year's squad was the first since 1998 to not reach the championship game of the ACC Tournament.
"We have a lot of time to rest, get fresh and work on some fundamentals," Gelnovatch said. "I have to think that something good will come from our early loss in the ACC Tournament. Advancing in that tournament takes a lot out of a team, so even though we don't have an ACC Championship, we have a fairly healthy team. The [loss to Clemson] was kind of a slap in the face and a wakeup call."
A Virginia win next Tuesday would likely set the team up for a third-round showdown Nov. 26 or 27 at North Carolina, which received the No. 4 overall seed. Further down the road, a Virginia win over the Tar Heels could send the Cavaliers to California for a semifinal contest at UCLA. The Final Four will be held at the SAS Soccer Stadium in Cary, N.C., Dec. 9 and 11. The ACC has eight teams in the tournament, a remarkable feat considering the conference has only nine schools with men's soccer programs. Maryland received the No. 1 overall seed.
"I'm pretty pleased with the draw," junior forward Adam Cristman said. "It's not going to be like last year where we were home the whole time, but with the mentality of our team this might be better for us. We're going to have to fight for it a little more, which should help keep us focused."
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