SAN JOSE, Calif. – The four teams to compete in the 2019 NCAA Women’s College Cup at Avaya Stadium are set, with three teams hailing from the Pac-12 Conference. Stanford, UCLA, Washington State and North Carolina will compete for a National Championship at the home of the San Jose Earthquakes this week on Friday and Sunday.
North Carolina and Washington State will meet in the first of back-to-back semifinals on Friday, Dec. 6 at 4 p.m. Stanford will then take on UCLA in a rematch of the 2017 National Championship at 6:30 p.m. The two winners will meet in the National Championship on Sunday, Dec. 8 at 5:30 p.m.
UNC is the most successful women’s soccer program in the nation, having claimed 21 of the 39 National Championships to date. The No. 2-ranked Tarheels went 16-1-1 in the regular season, won the ACC Tournament with three straight victories, and defeated Belmont, Colorado, Michigan and USC in the NCAA Tournament to reach the semis. Junior Alessia Russo and sophomore Brianna Pinto have scored 12 and 11 goals this season, respectively.
Unranked Washington State is the surprise of the tournament. After a 12-6-1 regular season, in which they finished sixth in the Pac-12 Conference, the Cougars dispatched three ranked teams in the NCAA Tournament, including No. 3 Virginia and No. 5 South Carolina. WSU is led by senior forward Morgan Weaver, who has scored a team-high 14 goals.
After earning an 18-1-0 regular-season record to claim the Pac-12 title and No. 1 seed nationally, Stanford has cruised through the NCAA Tournament with four victories by a combined total of 26-1. The Cardinal are led by junior Catarina Macario, a three-time All-Pac-12 First Team selection and reigning MAC Hermann Trophy winner. Stanford is seeking their third National Championship of the decade (2011, 2017).
UCLA, ranked No. 7 nationally, finished second in the Pac-12 Conference with a 14-4-1 regular-season record before defeating Lamar, Clemson, Wisconsin and Florida State in the NCAA Tournament. The Bruins have outscored their tournament opponents 15-1, including a 4-0 road victory over the defending-champion Seminoles in the quarterfinals. UCLA is led by freshman Mia Fishel, who scored a team-high 14 goals in 2019, including five so far in the NCAA Tournament.
Tickets can be purchased for just the semifinals on Friday, just the National Championship on Sunday, or discounted passes for all three games.
