It was, as per usual, a mixed weekend in the opening round of the NCAA Division I Tournament for the Aussies involved. Whilst the two teams that received at-large bids each progressed, our three conference champions were all unfortunately knocked out at the first hurdle against high-level opponents. Meanwhile, the NCAA Division III Tournament also kicked off this weekend, with Kayla O’Connor and Southern Maine managing to secure a win in their opener before falling in the second round. NJCAA Tournament action also commenced, with Aussies progressing to the knockout rounds in both Division I and Division II.
NCAA Division I Tournament
Grambling State (Aimee Benton)
First Round: lost 5-0 to Arkansas
Grambling State put in a solid first-half shift to maintain parity with Arkansas at the break, going in at 0-0. However, the SEC runner-up’s class shone through in the second half, getting started with two quick goals just after halftime before cruising to a 5-0 victory. Aimee Benton came off the bench to play the last eight minutes, making one save and conceding one goal as an outstanding season for the Tigers came to an end.
Morehead State (Natasha Tanner)
First Round: lost 5-0 to Florida State
Much the same as Grambling State, Morehead State found themselves in a tough position taking on #1 seed Florida State in the opening round. The Eagles were able to hold out their opponents for 34 minutes, but a flurry to end the first half saw the Seminoles take a 2-0 lead into halftime. A goal six minutes after the break sealed things, and with Florida State winning the shot count 31-2, a further two goals followed in the final 15 minutes. Natasha Tanner came off the bench playing the last 26 minutes of the Eagles’ season.
Maine (Lara Kirkby)
First Round: lost 3-0 to Harvard
Harvard came out firing against Maine, with the damage done courtesy of three first-half goals for the Crimson. Although Maine were unable to find a goal, they were able to hold Harvard out after halftime despite finishing on the wrong side of a 19-3 shot count. Lara Kirkby played the full 90 minutes, registering two shots with one on target as the South Australian was one of the main threats for the Black Bears until the very last.
#7 Santa Clara (Holly Furphy)
First Round: defeated Arizona State 3-0
On paper, this appeared to be one of the closer matchups of the first round, but Santa Clara used a clinical first half to secure their passage through to the second round and a matchup with #2 seed Penn State. A sixth minute goal set the Broncos on their way, before two goals within the space of three minutes just under ten minutes before halftime opened up a 3-0 advantage, which would remain the final score. With Arizona State only tallying three shorts on target for the entire afternoon, Santa Clara were rarely troubled. Holly Furphy came off the bench, playing the final 28 minutes of her NCAA Tournament debut after injury robbed her of the opportunity in 2022.
#8 USC (Talia Grossman)
First Round: defeated Grand Canyon 1-0
USC laboured to find a goal against Grand Canyon, but utter domination of general play meant that one would always be enough once they found it. The Women of Troy gave up just one shot on target throughout the 90 minutes, and with Helena Sampaio converting a 66th minute penalty, USC advanced to the second round on the back of that strike to set up a contest with #1 seed BYU next weekend. Talia Grossman did not feature for USC on this occasion.
NCAA Division III Tournament
Southern Maine (Kayla O’Connor)
First Round: defeated Rowan 2-0
Second Round: lost 4-1 to MIT
Kayla O’Connor did not feature in either game as Southern Maine advanced to the second round before falling to MIT.
NJCAA Division I Tournament
Arizona Western (Riley McQueenie)
Pool Stage Match 1: defeated Navarro 5-4 on penalties (1-1 AET)
Pool Stage Match 2: defeated Monroe CC 4-2 on penalties (1-1 AET)
Riley McQueenie came off the bench to tally a shot on target in Arizona Western’s shootout win against Navarro, but did not feature in the victory over Monroe Community College as her team advanced to the semi-finals.
Renee Junna (Tyler)
Pool Stage Match 1: defeated Barton 5-4 on penalties (0-0 AET)
Pool Stage Match 2: lost 3-2 to Eastern Florida State
Renee Junna came off the bench and converted her penalty in the shootout win over Barton, before starting and tallying two shots on target in Tyler’s loss to Eastern Florida State as their season came to an end in the pool stage.
NJCAA Division II Tournament
Johnson County (Montana-Rose Currey, Sophia Abbott)
Pool Stage Match 1: defeated Rock Valley 4-0
Pool Stage Match 2: defeated Northwest Mississippi 2-1
Montana-Rose Currey started both games as Johnson County advanced out of the pool stage, tallying 3 shots with one on target against Rock Valley. Sophia Abbott came off the bench to register a shot on target against Rock Valley, before starting against Northwest Mississippi.
Northeast (Samantha Bayer, Chelsea Dolbel, Pyper Lochead, Talia Sanders)
Pool Stage Match 1: defeated Schoolcraft 2-1
Pool Stage Match 2: lost 2-0 to Jones
Talia Sanders featured in both games as Northeast’s season came to an end in the pool stage, scoring a goal against Schoolcraft and tallying three shots with one on target against Jones. Chelsea Dolbel also featured against Schoolcraft.
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