GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The fifth-ranked Tusculum College men's soccer team (20-2-1) has advanced to the NCAA Division II National Quarterfinals for the second time in program history, and will battle the No. 11 University of Tampa Spartans (17-3-1) for the right to compete for the school's first national championship. Tusculum and Tampa will meet for the first time in NCAA II play this Sunday at 2 p.m. at Pioneer Field, where the Pioneers are 12-1 this season.

The match will feature two of the top defensive teams in the nation, as both sides have held opposing offenses to under one goal per contest.

Tusculum

The Pioneers have put together the most successful season in program history with a school-record 20 wins after shutting out No. 13 Lees-McRae 2-0 in the Southeast Region Final on Sunday. Tusculum began the year with a five-match winning streak, recording four shutouts and outscoring its opponents by a 14-1 margin in that span. Following a 6-1 loss to Lincoln Memorial in TC's South Atlantic Conference opener, the Pioneers responded by posting an 8-0-1 mark over their next nine matches, including shutouts of conference foes Brevard, Wingate, Carson-Newman, and Catawba.

Tusculum entered an Oct. 25 matchup with the University of Montevallo with a 13-1-1 overall record, and in possession of the fifth spot in the NSCAA national rankings. The Pioneers, trailing 3-0 in the 55th minute, battled back to cut the lead to 3-2 with just under 14 minutes remaining before Montevallo scored for the fourth time in the match to claim the victory.

The Pioneers put the road loss behind them, and proceeded to win their next seven matches to capture the South Atlantic Conference regular season title and the Food Lion SAC Tournament crown, as well as the program's second region championship.

Bruno Conceicão, this season's SAC Men's Soccer Player of the Year and Daktronics Southeast Region Player of the Year, has carried the Pioneers for much of the season with an NCAA II-leading 58 points to date. A native of Valenca, Bahia, Conceicão has scored 23 goals in 22 matches for TC this season, becoming the third player in program history to record 20 or more goals in two campaigns with the Pioneers. The 5-10, 160-pound forward has amassed the seven-highest goal and point totals in school history in just two seasons with 44 goals and 104 points in his career thus far.

A trio of midfielders have made a significant impact for the black and orange this season, as Scott Lucky, Anteneh Lemma, and 2007 SAC Freshman of the Year Lucas Paulini have combined for 20 goals and 33 assists through 23 matches this year. Lemma has emerged as one of TC's primary scoring threats, setting new career highs in goals (14), assists (9) and points (37). Paulini has picked up his play recently as the sophomore half back has recorded at least one point in five or his last six matches. Lucky currently ranks among the top 10 in the nation with 13 helpers, and is fourth on the team with four goals.

Junior goalkeeper Lance Moore has rewritten much of the TC record book this fall, setting a new single-season mark with 12 clean sheets, including four shutouts in conference play. A native of Morristown, Tenn., Moore has allowed three or more goals in just three matches this year, and has held ranked teams to two goals in five matches. The 6-2, 185-pound netminder has also moved into first all-time at Tusculum with 18 career shutouts and a 1.23 goals against average in 45 matches.

Tampa

Head Coach Adrian Bush has guided the Spart