Florida Women’s Soccer Team Qualifies for the NCAA Tournament

The UF Women’s soccer team received a bid from the NCAA Tournament yesterday. The team is making their way home to the Donald R. Dizney Stadium to take on South Florida this Friday. The Gators are hosting round one of the D1 tournament.

https://twitter.com/GatorsSoccer/status/1194240678206689280

The Gators 

Back in 1998, the team won their first NCAA title by defeating the North Carolina Tar Heels. They advanced to the NCAA semi-finals in 2001 and the quarterfinals in 1996, 2003, 2014, 2017. This tournament marks their 22nd NCAA appearance. They are 12th among the D1 franchises.

Head Coach Becky Burleigh has contributed to the team’s success. She has been the coach for all 25 seasons of the team’s existence. She led them to qualify for the NCAA tournament 22 times in their short 25 season life span.

As part of the South Eastern Conference, Senior Julia Lester and Redshirt Junior Parker Roberts are on the All-SEC first and SEC All-Tournament teams. The Gators have won 10 conference championships and 12 SEC tournament titles. Their most recent championship win was back to back in 2015 and 2016.

https://twitter.com/GatorsSoccer/status/1193643214839992321

The Gators are at an 11-8-1 record as they head into the tournament. They have already battled the Bulls during the regular season, winning 2-0.

The Bracket 

https://twitter.com/NCAASoccer/status/1194008436008214528

The bracket consists of 32 match-ups, with the top 15 automatically entered to host. The tournament is a four-week long endeavor. The first round is played on November 15th, 16th, and 17th. The action continues with the second and third rounds being hosted on eight campuses on the 22nd and 24th. The Quarterfinals are the 29th and 30th on four campuses, following the college cup December 6th and 8th in San Jose.

The matchup between the Gators and Bulls is at 7 p.m.