#1 Virginia Tech / #4 Santa Clara Region
Virginia Tech pulled off arguably the biggest upset in the nation when it defeated top-ranked and undefeated Virginia in the ACC semifinals last weekend. The Hokies earned one of the top four spots in the 64-team tournament after a 2013 season that saw them go 16-4-2, tied for the most wins in a season in program history which included five wins over nationally-ranked opponents. This is the sixth consecutive year that Tech has been selected to the NCAA Tournament and the first-ever No. 1 seed for the Hokies. Tech has advanced to the Sweet 16 on two occasions: 2009 and 2011. Jazmine Reeves has 10 goals on the year, Murielle Tiernan nine and Ashley Meier eight.
#1 Virginia Tech vs. UMBC
UMBC completed the worst-to-first feat, going from 1-11-5 in 2012, including a 0-5-3 mark in America East play, to capturing a share of its first-ever regular-season title with a 6-2 mark in league action, setting a program record in wins (13) and taking home its first-ever conference tournament crown. Leading UMBC to its first-ever NCAA appearance is defender Alexa Quaranta with eight goals and Jesse Brown with seven.
West Virginia vs. Rutgers
Rutgers enters the tournament after falling, 8-7, in PKs to No. 17 UCF in the inaugural American Athletic Conference Finals. With the NCAA selection, the Scarlet Knights earned their third NCAA at-large bid in the past five seasons and second in a row after reaching the second round in the 2012 NCAA Tournament. Stefanie Scholz has 10 goals to lead the squad. Fellow striker Jonelle Filigno has eight shots that have found the back of the net. Freshman midfielder Madison Tiernan has six goals and five assists. West Virginia holds a record of 16-3-2 this season (7-1 Big 12), winning 12 of its last 13 matches. Most recently, West Virginia won the Big 12 Tournament with a 1-0 blanking of Oklahoma State on Sunday. The Mountaineers have advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 14-consecutive seasons and hosted the NCAA Tournament in seven previous seasons, including the last three. Frances Silva is the team's star with 15 goals and assisting on 13 others.
Harvard has advanced to its 14th NCAA tournament in program history and fourth NCAA appearance for head coach Ray Leone. Harvard (12-3-2) enters the tournament on a 14-game unbeaten streak, the longest in program history. The Crimson were also perfect in conference action (7-0) for the first time since 1999. Harvard and BU played to a 1-1 draw Oct. 8 behind a first-half goal from freshman Margaret Purce. It marked the lone goal the Terriers have allowed at home all season. Harvard faced the Terriers in its last appearance in the NCAA tournament in 2011, a 3-0 loss. Purce leads the team with 11 goals, while Elizabeth Weisman has six. After winning its first Patriot League Championship, the Boston University women’s soccer team will host an NCAA tournament game for the second time in program history. The Terriers are making their 11th overall trip to the NCAA tournament and first since 2011. Prior to joining the Patriot League in July 2013, BU earned 10 NCAA bids as a member of the America East, including seven straight from 2005 to 2011. Holding a 14-3-4 record, BU is on a 12-game unbeaten streak and captured its first Patriot League title with a 1-0 win at Navy on Sunday. Erica Kosienski has seven goals and was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Year. Madison Clemens has six goals.
#4 Santa Clara vs. California
After winning a share of the 10th West Coast Conference title in program history, Santa Clara will host Cal in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday. This is the third consecutive year the Broncos will host the first round of the NCAA Tournament and the 24th tournament in program history. It was the Broncos' first conference title since 2006 and the 10th in program history. The Broncos blew away the WCC with 57 goals, 151 points and 355 shots. Santa Clara's 3.00 goals per game gave it the second-best scoring offense in the country, behind No. 1 Virginia. Santa Clara was also second in the conference with 37 assists. The 22 goals allowed by the team ranked third in the conference and Santa Clara tied for the most shutouts in the conference with nine. A trio of dominant offensive players leads Santa Clara. Morgan Marlborough led the conference with 14 goals and 33 points while adding five assists. Sofia Huerta was second in the WCC with 13 goals, six assists and 32 points and Julie Johnston was third in goals with 12 and points with 31 while also leading the conference with seven assists. The University of California women’s soccer team is set for a rematch with Santa Clara after clinching an at-large berth in the NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament. With an 11-4-5 regular season record, Cal clinched its 10th consecutive postseason bid and 21st appearance overall. The Bears have already faced the Broncos once this year, settling for a 1-1 double overtime draw at Santa Clara. The Golden Bears have an all-time postseason record of 14-19-13 and have advanced to at least the second round of the tournament seven of the last 10 seasons, and every year except 2008 since Neil McGuire became head coach in 2007. Ifeoma Onumonu has a team-high eight goals and Samantha Witteman and Kaitlyn Fitzpatrick have six goals each. Fitzpatrick also has six assists.
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