As Auburn’s soccer coaches and players waited for the NCAA Tournament field to be unveiled last Monday, there was some apprehension. The Tigers had shared the Southeastern Conference West Division championship, but they had lost in the first round of the league tournament.
Would they make the field for the seventh time in eight seasons? They weren’t sure.
When the pairings were announced, the Tigers learned they would be in the same four-team regional with Florida State, ranked No. 4 nationally. They assumed they would go to Tallahassee. They were wrong.
“It was a great night to see our name on the board,” Auburn coach Karen Hoppa said. “Then, 15 minutes later we found out we were hosting, which was an absolute shock to everyone in the room. We definitely thought we would be going to Tallahassee.”
The NCAA’s policy is to try to keep teams within driving distance, defined as a 400-mile radius. A new rule doesn’t allow pairing teams from the same conference in the first two rounds. When Belmont, located in Nashville, was the surprise winner of the Atlantic Sun Tournament, the nod went to Auburn as the host.
The Tigers (11-8-2) play Belmont (13-6-3) at 5 p.m. in today’s first round. Florida State (14-2-3) plays Mississippi Valley State (10-10-2) at 2 p.m. The two winners will play Sunday.
Auburn will be led by All-SEC goalkeeper Allison Whitworth and SEC Freshman of the Year Katy Frierson. Hoppa says Belmont will provide a big challenge in its first NCAA Tournament appearance.
“They have a fantastic goalkeeper,” Hoppa said. “It is going to be one of those tight games where chances are going to be few and far between. We will have to capitalize on the ones we get.”
Tickets are $3 for students with identification and $10 for adults. One ticket is good for both Friday games.
