The inaugural season of the Keidane McAlpine era reached another milestone Monday afternoon as the University of Georgia soccer team received an at-large berth to the 2022 NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Championship, the program’s first bid since the 2014 season.
Georgia (12-5-3, 5-3-2 SEC) earned the No. 7 seed in the Chapel Hill Regional and will host Samford on Friday, Nov. 11 at 6 p.m. at the Turner Soccer Complex. Friday’s match will mark the first NCAA Tournament match in Athens since 2007. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
Tickets can be purchased for $10 each, with all tickets being general admission. The Turner Soccer Complex will open one hour prior to the start of the match. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the UGA Ticket Office.
Georgia, one of nine SEC teams to earn a selection, is making its 10th tournament appearance, entering the field with a 6-9-1 all-time record in the event. In its history, the program has hosted three NCAA Tournament matches at home, including wins over Wake Forest (1997) and Alabama A&M (2007). The Bulldogs last advanced in the tournament with a 2-0 first round win at Kansas in 2011, while the program’s longest run came in 1998 when they advanced to the Round of 16. Georgia and Samford have played three times prior to the tournament, with Georgia holding a 2-0-1 advantage in the series.
Georgia is looking to carry the momentum from a terrific run in the SEC Tournament, where the Bulldogs upset third-seeded Tennessee and pushed eventual champion South Carolina to penalties in the semifinals. The Bulldogs finished the season with six-consecutive results, including four shutouts from freshman goalkeeper Jordan Brown. With strong play in net throughout the season, the Bulldogs’ defense allowed only 14 goals on the season and posted 11 shutouts, both tied for second in program history. Graduate midfielder Abby Boyan was selected to the First Team All-SEC, her third-straight selection, while Brown and graduate forward Dani Murguia were named to the SEC All-Tournament Team.
A total of 64 teams were selected to the NCAA Tournament with 31 conferences being awarded automatic qualifications, while the remaining 33 slots were filled with at-large selections to complete the bracket.
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