BU Men's Soccer to host Opening Round at UNO’s Caniglia Field

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- On Monday the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics announced the 40-team Men's Soccer National Tournament Field.

Bellevue University, one of 10 Opening Round hosts, will begin their National Championship quest on Thursday, Nov. 18 with a 1 p.m. kick-off against Olivet Nazarene University at Caniglia Field on the campus of the University of Nebraska Omaha. * (note: Bellevue was originally supposed to host at Creighton's Morrison Stadium but scheduling conflicts caused the Opening Round site to shift to UNO's Caniglia Field.)

Bellevue (15-2-2), ranked eighth nationally in the latest NAIA Coaches' Poll and 10^th in the final MRPI, is making its eighth NAIA National Tournament appearance overall and third under current head coach Mark Heath-Preston.

Bellevue qualified by winning the Continental Athletic Conference Tournament, earning the first of two bids allotted to the CAC.

Joining the Bruins in the Opening Round are No. 2 seed MidAmerica Nazarene University (11-6-1), No. 3 seed McPherson College (12-7-0), and No. 4 seed Olivet Nazarene University (16-3-1).

Both MNU and McPherson snagged at-large bids to the National Tournament while ONU earned an automatic bid by winning both the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament titles.

The Bruins are 6-2-0 all-time in Opening Round matches, advancing to the NAIA Final Site on five occasions, including the program's first-ever appearance in the Quarterfinals this past spring.

This will be Bellevue's second time hosting an Opening Round site. The Bruins roared to a 3-0 win over Marymount California during a snow-riddled contest in 2018 en route to the NAIA Final Site.

In seven games against National Tournament qualifiers this season, BU posted a record of 4-1-2.

The 40-team NAIA Opening Round event at 10 campus locations will occur from November 18-20.

Each bracket format features four teams with #1 vs. #4 and #2 vs. #3 on Thursday, November 18th. The winner of each contest will meet on Saturday for a spot at the final site in Decatur, Ala. The 63rd Annual Men's Soccer National Championship will be played at Jack Allen Sports Complex from November 30-December 6 where one team will leave the pitch claiming the famous red-banner. 

This year's opening round field includes 27 automatic qualifiers and 13 at-large selections. Automatic berths were given to teams that either won their respective conference tournament title, regular-season championship, or finished runner-up at the conference tournament or regular season as determined by each conference qualification plan. The at-large bids were determined by the NAIA Men's Soccer National Selection Committee. This committee consists of one representative from each geographical area, a representative from the National Administrative Council, the president of the NAIA-Women's Soccer Coaches Association, and three at-large members. The committee evaluated teams throughout the year on various criteria.

The NAIA Network – the association's official video streaming home – will broadcast all 10 matches live at the  NAIA Men's Soccer National Championship final site in Decatur, Ala. The video platform, powered by Stretch Internet, allows users access to live video, statistics, and social interaction on a number of devices, including mobile. Single day passes can be purchased for $9.95, while an all-championship tournament package is available at $34.95. For more information and to pre-register, click HERE.

NAIA Opening Round – Omaha Bracket