BERKELEY – After a strong showing in its 2017 campaign, California men's soccer returns to the NCAA tournament as an at-large bid and will host San Francisco in the first round on Thursday, Nov. 16, the NCAA Men's Soccer Selection Committee announced, Monday.
 
The Golden Bears (11-6-0, 6-4-0 Pac-12) clinched their 12th playoff berth under Kevin Grimes and 18th overall appearance after a turnaround season highlighted by a six-game win streak, four Pac-12 Player of the Week honors, and multiple stints in the top 25 on the United Soccer Coaches poll – their highest ranking coming in at 17th – closing the season ranked 22nd.
 
The Bears closed as Pac-12 runners-up, behind Stanford (15-2-1, 9-0-1), their best finish since winning the conference title in 2010. Cal proved potent at home giving up just one loss in league play at Edwards Stadium and is one of three Pac-12 teams advancing to the tournament. Cal's squad along with No. 9 seed Stanford, who will have a first-round bye, and Washington (12-6-1, 5-4-1) who finished third in league play and hosts nearby Seattle, earned playoff berths. 
 
Individually, Bears' senior midfielder Jose Carrera-Garcia led the league with nine assists, while sophomore goalkeeper Drake Callender's 71 saves topped the conference charts.

Cal visited USF (9-8-0,  6-1-0 WCC) earlier this season in a late-night shootout in San Francisco where the Bears downed the Dons 3-2 in dramatic fashion. The last time the teams faced off in Berkeley was in 2015 where the Blue and Gold prevailed 3-1. The winner will face fourth-seeded Louisville.
 
Cal returns to the post season for the first time since 2014 when the team made it to the third round, before falling to UCLA 3-2.
 
Thursday's game time has yet to be determined, but fans can get up-to-date information by following Cal men's soccer @CalMSoc on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and on the NCAA website.