TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Top-seeded Florida State (21-1-3) welcomes Boston College (13-9-1) to Tallahassee on Friday, November 29 for a showdown at 3 pm inside the Seminole Soccer Complex in the NCAA Quarterfinals.
What’s at stake – a trip to the College Cup at WakeMed Park in Cary, N.C. The Seminoles are seeking their seventh College Cup appearance all-time and third in a row, while the Eagles are looking for their second trip to the College Cup and first since 2010.
Florida State and Boston College are meeting for the second time this season and third time overall in the NCAA Tournament. The first postseason meeting between these two schools came in 2004 in the first round in Gainesville, Fla. Both schools played to a scoreless draw before BC advanced in pks 3-1. In 2008, FSU advanced past BC in the third round with a 1-0 victory in Tallahassee. This year the stakes are a little larger with the winner advancing to the College Cup in Cary, N.C.
Boston College is the fourth ACC opponent the Seminoles will face in the NCAA Tournament all-time. The Seminoles have faced Clemson (1-2-0), North Carolina (0-0-1) and Virginia (1-0-0). Friday’s match against the Eagles marks the fourth time FSU will face an ACC opponent with a trip to the College Cup on the line. FSU tied UNC 1-1 in Chapel Hill in 2005 before defeating the Tar Heels 5-4 in pks. The Seminoles then defeated Clemson 2-1 in Tallahassee in 2006 and beat Virginia 3-0 in 2011 to advance to the national semifinal for the fifth time in school history.
FSU leads the all-time series against Boston College at 10-1-2 and is perfect in seven all-time matches played inside the friendly confines of the Seminole Soccer Complex. Earlier this year in Tallahassee, the Seminoles erased a two-goal second half deficit scoring four goals in a 4-3 victory over the Eagles. The win marked FSU’s largest come-from-behind victory at home since October 7, 2001 when Florida State came back from two down to defeat Duke, 3-2, in overtime.
FSU has outscored the Eagles 22-8 in the series as 11 of the 13 matches in the series have been decided by one goal or less including 10 of the last 11. Six of those matches have been a 1-0 decision in favor of the Seminoles. In the 13 previous matches, FSU has posted 10 shutouts. Friday marks the second straight year and fourth time since 2007 that these two schools have faced off on more than one occasion in the same year.
With a win over Colorado in the third round, the Seminoles improved to 30-1-0 at home all-time in the NCAA Tournament outscoring the opposition 92-16. FSU had won 18 straight NCAA Tournament games inside the Seminole Soccer Complex before suffering its first home loss in the Elite Eight back in 2009. Florida State is 15-0-1 at home in 2013 and is carrying a 34-game (33-0-1) home unbeaten streak into Friday’s quarterfinal round match.
