The announcement of USD’s spot in the NCAA men’s soccer tournament was greeted with cheers at a public viewing on campus Monday morning, and then a few raised eyebrows.

The Toreros are the No. 9 seed in the 48-team bracket and, as such, get a first-round bye before hosting Thursday’s UCLA-Grand Canyon winner on Sunday night at 5 p.m. Fair enough.

But should they win that and advance to the Sweet 16, they’re slated to travel to the No. 8 seed, which is Portland, which tied for second in the West Coast Conference while the Toreros won a record fourth consecutive league title with Saturday’s 4-2 victory at then-No. 10 Oregon State.

The Toreros (13-2-3) have the better RPI, the metric still used in men’s soccer, at No. 5 to No. 8. Same for strength of schedule, 16th vs. 50th. USD moved up t

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