ROCK HILL, S.C. --- Tusculum College will host Lenoir-Rhyne University in a Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Men's Soccer Tournament quarterfinal match Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at Pioneer Field.

The Pioneers earned the second seed in the eight-team field after compiling a 6-1-2 record in conference play (7-7-3 overall), while the Bears are the seventh seed after going 3-4-2 in SAC play and 7-8-3 overall. The teams played to a 1-1 tie in their regular-season meeting at Lenoir-Rhyne on Sunday afternoon.

Tusculum and Lenoir-Rhyne have met twice previously in the Food Lion SAC Tournament, with the Bears winning 5-2 at Pioneer Field in the 2005 quarterfinals and the Pioneers using a 4-3 margin in penalty kicks in the 2009 quarterfinals to advance after the teams played to a 3-3 tie in Hickory.

Tuesday's winner will advance to the Food Lion SAC semifinals Friday at 6 p.m. at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill, S.C. against the winner of the quarterfinal match between third-seeded Mars Hill and sixth-seeded Catawba. Tuesday's other quarterfinal matches have eighth-seeded Wingate traveling to top-seeded Anderson for a 3 p.m. match, and fourth-seeded Lincoln Memorial hosting fifth-seeded Carson-Newman at 2 p.m.

Tusculum's road to the second seed in the conference tournament was unexpected after the Pioneers missed last year's playoffs after winning just one league game. With new head coach Allen Vital and a starting lineup that featured up to 10 freshmen, the Pioneers stumbled to an 0-6 start that included four one-goal losses.

However, an infusion of three new starters to the lineup kick-started a surge that saw the Pioneers go 7-1-3 over their final 11 matches. Five straight shutout victories fueled the surge, including a 1-0 win over then-13th ranked Clayton State on Oct. 8 and a convincing 4-0 victory over rival Carson-Newman on Oct. 12. The only blemish on the Pioneers' record was a 2-1 double-overtime loss at SAC champion Anderson on Oct. 15.

Leading the way on offense for the Pioneers is freshman striker Stephen McNeill, who leads the Pioneers with seven goals and 16 points. McNeill, who has scored on seven of his 11 shots on goal, also leads the team with four game-winning goals and is 2-for-2 on penalty kicks.

Additional offense is provided by senior Javier Portillo (4 goals, 2 assists, 10 points) and freshmen Roberto Pimentel and Pontus Rosen (3 goals apiece).

The Tusculum defense is anchored by the leadership of junior goalkeeper Andy Goellner, who has played all 1,626 minutes in goal and compiled a stellar 1.11 goals against average and an .804 save percentage. Goellner, who has amassed 82 saves in 17 matches, has recorded seven shutouts to rank among the SAC leaders.

The Pioneers feature four freshmen starters in the back, led by Matias Rubio and Fredrik Muren along with fellow rookies Carter Dorton and Adam Kulbat. Midfield play has been anchored by freshmen Philip Karlsson and Kjetil Paulsen, along with part-time starter Joel Martinsson.

Lenoir-Rhyne features a balanced attack that has seen 12 different players score goals. Jordan Holmes and Chibuzo Nwosu share the team lead in scoring with five goals and 10 points apiece, with Sean Rogers adding four goals and nine points, including three penalty-kick tallies.

Stefan Dill has started 16 games in goal for the Bears, going 6-7-2 with a 1.35 goals against average and a .764 save percentage. His only two shutouts came in back-to-back games against Mount Olive (3-0) and North Georgia (1-0) in mid-September.

Ticket prices are $6 for adults and $3 for children (ages 6-12), and college students. Fans showing the Food Lion MVP card can save $1 off the price of an adult ticket. The Tusculum athletic department will be providing the admission charge for Tusculum students, but they must show a valid TC ID to be admitted. No other passes or rates will be honored for admission to Tuesday's game.

- TC -

2011 Food Lion SAC Soccer Championship - Men's Quarterfinals
(All quarterfinal matches to take place on Tuesday, Nov. 1 at the higher-seed's campus)

No. 8 Wingate at No. 1 Anderson, 3 p.m.
No. 5 Carson-Newman at No. 4 Lincoln Memorial, 2 p.m.
No. 6 Catawba at No. 3 Mars Hill, 7:30 p.m.
No. 7 Lenoir-Rhyne at No. 2 Tusculum, 7 p.m.