SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — The UC Santa Barbara Men's Soccer team heard its name called as one of 26 at-large selections to the NCAA Tournament on Monday, being drawn in a first-round matchup with UCLA in Los Angeles. The Gauchos will meet the Bruins on Thursday from Wallis Annenberg Stadium, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
 
This year will be Santa Barbara's 15^th appearance in an NCAA Tournament, with all 15 coming under current head coach Tim Vom Steeg. Thursday will be the fourth time that Vom Steeg and the Gauchos meet UCLA in the tournament, with their last appearance in 2021 also coming against the Bruins in Los Angeles. Of course, the most famous meeting between Santa Barbara and UCLA came in 2006, when the Gauchos defeated the Bruins, 2-1, to win the national championship.
 
The winner of Thursday night's game will advance to play No. 16-seed Stanford in the Round of 32 on Sunday, Nov. 24 in Palo Alto.