OMAHA, Neb. -- Creighton men's soccer's highly-anticipated battle against Akron on Aug. 31 will be televised statewide by NET, CU officials announced on Wednesday. Kick-off for the contest is set for 7:36 pm (Central) at Rev. Michael G. Morrison, S.J., Stadium in Omaha.

Creighton is ranked No. 3 in the preseason NSCAA top-25 poll, while Akron is No. 10.

Both Creighton and Akron have been wildly successful in soccer in recent seasons. Creighton has advanced to four College Cups in history and has played in 19 of the last 20 NCAA Tournaments. Last season the Jays sent four men to the MLS and set an NCAA record with a 0.204 goals against average. Akron, the 2009 NCAA runner-up and 2010 NCAA champion, is 105-17-14 in the past six years and has produced two of the last three MAC Hermann Trophy winners. The Zips have ranked top-five in goals scored each of the past three years.

The teams have met just once before in the regular-season, a 1-0 Zips win in Akron on Oct. 27, 2010. The teams tied 1-1 in an exhibition match last August in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Creighton went 14-0-0 at Morrison Stadium last year, and is 11-0-0 in its last 11 non-conference home games vs. top-25 foes. The Bluejays have finished in the top-10 nationally in average home attendance each of the past nine years, including a seventh-place showing in 2011.

In addition to the match being televised by NET, the network will also stream the game free of charge on its website at http://www.netnebraska.org.

To ensure the Creighton-Akron telecast starts on time, the Rutgers vs. Southern Illinois Edwardsville game that opens the Ameritas Classic will be moved up 30 minutes to a 4:30 pm start.

The Aug. 31 telecast is one of two planned for Creighton men's soccer this fall, as its Oct. 9 match at Princeton will air on ESPNU.

Creighton men's soccer hosts No. 9 Maryland on Friday in a 7 pm exhibition at Morrison Stadium, then closes exhibition play on Sunday with a 4 pm game vs. crosstown foe Nebraska Omaha. The Jays open the regular-season on Aug. 24 with a 7:30 pm contest vs. Northern Illinois.