Women's Soccer 2014 NCAA Tournament #1 Florida State Region 2nd and 3rd Round Game Breakdowns
#1 Florida State vs. Northeastern
Florida State’s 5-0 thrashing of South Alabama in the first round extended the Seminoles unbeaten streak to 16 games. Next up for the Seminoles is Northeastern, which beat Boston University 2-0 to earn its first official NCAA Tournament win (the Huskies defeated Harvard on penalty kicks back in 2008, which technically goes down as a draw). Northeastern goalkeeper Paige Burnett, one of the country’s top net minders, will have to be at her best if the Huskies hold any realistic chance of advancing to the third round. South Alabama managed just two shots against Florida State with their lone shot on goal coming from Charde Hannah. The freshman had 20 goals and 47 points coming into the game, but she was completely shut down by Florida State. While this may end up being a defensive battle, Florida State possesses a much more potent attack, so the edge goes to the Seminoles.
UCF squeezed by Georgia 2-1 in its first round game and will head to fourth-seeded Wisconsin next. The Badgers handed Depaul its first loss of the season, sending the Blue Demons packing after just one game. Cara Walls got her team-leading 13th and 14th goals in Wisconsin’s 2-0 win, and the team successfully kept Depaul’s big three from getting on the scoreboard. UCF and Wisconsin both rank in the top ten nationally in goals-against-average, so expect a tight encounter. However, the Badgers may hold an advantage when it comes to weather. Wisconsin played on a snow-topped field against Depaul and UCF hasn’t traveled this far north all season, so cold conditions definitely favor the Badgers.
A third-round meeting between Florida State and Wisconsin seems to be the most likely scenario. Even if UCF manages to upset the Badgers, Florida State should be there waiting, and the Seminoles are superior to all other teams in this part of the bracket. As a result, anything other than a trip to the quarterfinals would be a huge surprise.
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