Badgers host first round of NCAA Tournament against ASU
November 09, 2009 | Women's Soccer
Nov. 9, 2009
MADISON, Wis. -The Wisconsin women’s soccer team (9-5-5, 5-1-4 Big Ten) has been selected to host the first and second round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament this Friday and Sunday, Nov. 13 and 15, at the McClimon Soccer Complex.
Wisconsin will face Arizona State in the first round Friday night, while UW-Milwaukee will go against ninth-ranked and third-seeded Central Florida. Times for the games have not yet been set.
Check out a video with the Badgers reaction to the NCAA Selection Show.
“I’m really excited for the players,” said third-year head coach Paula Wilkins. “They’ve done great things this season. We asked a lot of them during the off-season to get better and they really responded. I have great respect for what they’ve done to get Wisconsin back in the NCAA tournament.
“This is a step forward for the program. We challenged them and they rose to the challenge. I’m really happy for them and to see their excitement is beyond words.”
Friday’s match will mark the first meeting between the Badgers and the Sun Devils. ASU is coming off a 9-7-3 regular season and a 2-6-1 mark in the Pac-10. The winner will play the winner of the Milwaukee-UCF game in the second round on Sunday.
The Sun Devils, who are making their first NCAA appearance since 2003, finished the season with wins over Oregon State and Oregon. ASU also defeated Tennessee 3-2 on Aug. 28, while the Badgers dropped a 1-0 decision to the Volunteers a week later. Both teams fell to top-ranked Stanford this season, Wisconsin in a 6-0 defeat and ASU by a score of 3-1.
Milwaukee has won 10 straight games, including posting an 8-0 record in league play. The Panthers shut out a pair of league foes on their way to a sixth Horizon League tournament title.
The UCF Knights enter the NCAA tournament with a 16-4-1 record. The Knights won the Conference USA regular season title with a 10-1 record but fell to Memphis in the C-USA championship game, 3-0.
UW is 2-1-1 all-time against Central Florida, with the teams’ last meeting coming in 1998. UWM is a familiar foe, as the Badgers played the Panthers to a 0-0 draw in their home-opener this season. Wisconsin leads the all-time series with UWM, 17-4-5.
The at-large bid marks UW’s 15th NCAA tournament appearance, and the Badgers will look to improve on their 11-14-0 tournament record. The Badgers have not hosted a tournament game since 2000, but UW holds a 5-1 record at McClimon in the first round of the tournament.
The Badgers finished the regular season on a seven-game unbeaten streak to land third place in the Big Ten, marking their best finish since 2000. UW’s last NCAA appearance was in 2005, when the Badgers earned an automatic bid after taking the Big Ten tournament title.
That year, Wisconsin dropped its first round contest to in-state rival Marquette by a score of 1-0.
Wisconsin is one of five Big Ten teams in the tournament. Fourth-seeded Penn State and No. 11-ranked Ohio State will also host the first and second round games, while Purdue travels to Notre Dame and Michigan State to Santa Clara.
Check back to UWBadgers.com throughout the week for updated tournament information.
For all ticket information click here or call 1.800.GO.BADGERS.
NCAA Women's soccer ticket information
Pricing
Package:
$12 adult
$5 youth/student/senior
*One ticket for each day, no re-entry allowed
Single Tickets:
$7 adult
$3 youth/student/senior
*No re-entry allowed
Children under Age of 2
Free when accompanied by ticketed adult
On-Sale Dates
Tuesday, November 10 @ 8:30am (Online, phone, window) – Packages Only
Friday, November 13 @ 8:30am (Online, phone, window) – Single game tickets
Specific Ticket Information
No tickets will be mailed - All tickets will be placed in Will Call
Pick up at Athletic Ticket Office prior to 3pm on Friday, November 13
Beginning at 4pm all tickets and sales at McClimon Soccer Complex on Friday, November 13
Advanced Sales Cutoff
Packages sold until 3pm on Friday afternoon (Not available at the event)
Sales @ McClimon
Will call & Friday game tickets (Only) sales begin at McClimon Soccer Complex at 4pm on Friday, November 13
Will call & Sunday game ticket sales begin at McClimon Soccer Complex at Noon on Sunday, November 15
Jacqueline Boscacci
Wisconsin Athletic Communications
