UConn Women’s Soccer: Huskies Will Host Albany in First Round of NCAA Tournament

The UConn women’s soccer team learned its fate for the NCAA Tournament, which will start with a game against the Albany Great Danes at home on Saturday.

Albany claimed an automatic bid after winning the America East Tournament. The Great Danes are 11-7-1 on the season but hold just a 3-6-1 record on the road. They were conference co-champions in the regular season before barely getting past Hartford in the tournament final with a controversial no-call on their game-winning goal.

The Huskies (18-2-1, 8-0-1 AAC) earned an automatic bid with a 1-0 win over SMU in the American Conference Tournament Finals. They also won the AAC Regular Season Championship after going undefeated in conference play, with their only blemish coming in a 0-0 tie with SMU. UConn’s last loss came nearly two months ago when the Huskies fell 3-0 to then-No. 1 Florida State on September 8th. Since that game, UConn allowed multiple goals just once.

If the Huskies advance to the second round, they would face the winner of the Auburn Tigers and South Alabama Jaguars. Auburn is the fourth seed and will host after going 14-6-0, losing in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament to Arkansas. South Alabama earned a trip to the tournament after winning its fourth consecutive Sun Belt championship, finishing with a 15-1-1 record.

This is UConn’s third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, 31st total. The Huskies have reached the Women’s College Cup seven times, advancing to the championship game four times. Unfortunately, they have failed to bring home a title, losing to the 21-time national champion North Carolina Tar Heels all four times.

Last season, UConn advanced to the third round, the deepest tournament run the team had made since 2007. The Huskies are 16-6-1 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, with just two of those losses coming in the last 23 seasons.