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HUNTSVILLE | The University of Alabama in Huntsville men's soccer team will open up play at the 2015 Gulf South Conference Championships on Friday evening, taking on sixth-seeded West Florida at 5 p.m. at Tiger Stadium on the campus of West Alabama.
 
UAH is the No. 2 seed in the tournament, earning a bye to the semifinals after posting a 7-2-0 mark in conference play this season.
 
Under the direction of GSC Coach of the Year Matt Watts, the Chargers were 10-5 overall on the year and won nine of their last 11 contests while racking up a GSC-best six all-conference players led by first team honorees Leo De Smedt, Rafn Haraldsson, John Imwalle, and Jordan Wright.
 
In Wright's first season in Huntsville, the junior currently ranks second in the league with 13 goals and 32 points, helping spark a UAH offensive attack that leads the GSC with 2.5 goals per contest.
 
The Chargers bested that scoring average in the regular season meeting with Friday's opponent, winning a double overtime thriller 3-2 at home over the Argos when Hermann Bjornsson successfully converted a PK with only nine seconds remaining in the second overtime period.
 
West Florida went on the road on Super Tuesday and knocked off third-seeded Lee 3-2 to advance to the semifinals while improving its record to 11-5-0 on the season. Felipe Oliveira scored twice – including the game-winner – to move to five goals on the season, just one off of Marteinn Urbancic who leads UWF with six scores.
 
UAH is 5-7-3 all-time in the GSC tournament including championships in 1996 and 1997, logging two other finals appearances in 1999 and, most recently, 2009. A season ago, the Chargers reached the semifinals and tied West Alabama who advanced on penalty kicks.
 
Against West Florida in the tournament, UAH is 1-4-1, and the teams last met at the championships when the Argos were 3-2 winners in the semifinals in 2011.
 
West Alabama takes on Shorter in the other semifinal match, and the two advancing teams will play at 1 p.m. on Sunday in Livingston to decide the champion.