WASHINGTON, DC --- The Howard women's soccer team will make its NCAA Tournament debut against the No. 1 seed University of Virginia Cavaliers, the NCAA announced today with the release of the 64-team Division I Women's Soccer Championship bracket.
"This is a terrific day for the soccer program, for the athletic department and for Howard University," said Athletic Director
Kery Davis. "Coach Leiba has built a great program and these ladies represent the best of Howard."
The Bison and the Cavaliers will meet on Friday, November 13 at UVA's Klöckner Stadium in Charlottesville. First touch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
"It's a surreal feeling, knowing what we've accomplished - winning that first championship, repeating this year and finally getting to be in the 'Big Dance'. It's a fantastic opportunity and a fantastic experience for this program," said Howard Head Coach
Brent Leiba.
A No. 4 seed in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Tournament with a 7-3 conference record, Howard (13-7-2) secured its first-ever trip to the NCAAs with a
2-1 victory over No 3 seed Alabama State Sunday afternoon in Huntsville, Alabama. The title was the Bison's second straight in as many seasons in the SWAC after claiming
regular season &
tournament championships as the No. 1 seed in 2014. However, Howard was unable to accept the conference's automatic bid to the tournament last year because of its first-year affiliation status. HU's back-to-back titles marked the first time a SWAC school has repeated as women's soccer champions. The Bison have also posted back-to-back, school-record 13-win seasons in their SWAC Championship campaigns.
The Bison's accomplishment provides them with the opportunity to go up against a Cavalier team that earned one of the tournament's four No. 1 seeds, joining Stanford, Penn State and defending national champion Florida State atop the bracket. Virginia (16-1-2) earned the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) regular season championship and reached the ACC Tournament Championship Game before falling to Florida State in a shootout on Sunday. UVA will be making its 28th overall appearance out of 34 NCAA Tournaments and its 22nd in a row. The Cavaliers fell to Florida State, 1-0, in the 2014 Women's College Cup Final.
Even with one of the top teams in the nation standing in Howard's way, senior
Dytria Ruddy - the only player to play in all three of Howard's conference championship games (2012 Great West, 2014-15 SWAC) - is confident that the Bison will be ready for the task at head.
"We were a Cinderella story back then, what's to say we can't be one now? We'll be ready for this next match because in the end, we want people to remember Howard," Ruddy said.
More information, including a full match preview, will be made available on HUBison.com throughout the week.
VIA VIRGINIA'S ATHLETICS WEBSITE
- Tickets for the game are $9 for reserved seats, $7 for adult general admission and $5 for youth/UVA students/senior citizen general admission. Fans can order tickets for the tournament online at VirginiaSports.com and by phone through the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office at 800-542-UVA1 (8821) or 434-924-UVA1 (8821). Tickets are also available at the gate beginning one hour prior to the start of play.
- Free public parking will be available in the Emmet/Ivy Garage (UVA PARKING MAP - CLICK HERE). The Virginia men's basketball team hosts Morgan State at 7 p.m. on Friday, so the John Paul Jones Arena and University Hall parking lots are reserved for men's basketball permit holders.
