MADISON, Wis. – Hearing "Wisconsin" called during the NCAA selection show on Monday afternoon marked the 20th time in program history that the Wisconsin women's soccer team (12-3-4 overall, 6-2-3 Big Ten) will partake in the NCAA Tournament.
1. REWIND: Wisconsin's most recent action took place against No. 5 Illinois in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament. Split 0-0 after double overtime, the Fighting Illini knocked UW off 3-0 in penalty kicks. Prior to the conference tournament, Wisconsin was unbeaten in seven of its last eight games, including four wins in a row before Wisconsin's final regular season match, a loss at Ohio State.
2. SCOUTING MEMPHIS: The Tigers posted a 17-3 record in 2018, including 7-2 in the American Athletic Conference. In the team's first year in the AAC, Memphis won the conference championship in 3-0 fashion over the No. 1 seed University of South Florida.
Memphis' go-to scorer is Clarissa Larisey, posting 28 points off of 12 goals and four assists and getting off a whopping 73 shots.
3. WISCO'S STARS: Heading into the postseason Wisconsin has three players in double digits for points. Leading the team is sophomore Lauren rice with 16, coming from seven goals and two assists. Behind Rice sits junior
Dani Rhodes and sophomore
Cameron Murtha with 12 points apiece. Rhodes has put up five goals and two assists while Murtha has four of each.
Senior
Emily Borgmann has been a crucial part to Wisconsin's success, logging nine points including three goals, all game-winners.
4. TOURNAMENT HISTORY: The Badgers' first appearance in program history came in 1985. UW was bounced in the first round to Colorado College, 1-0. Wisconsin made four appearances in a row from 1988-1991. The furthest the team has gone has been the NCAA championship against North Carolina in 1991. UW lost that match, 3-1.
Wisconsin has made four elite eight appearances and two final fours. The most recent appearance came in 2017, in which UW reached the second round following a 5-0 defeat over Toledo. Wisconsin then was eliminated by South Carolina, 1-0 in Columbia.
5. GAME TIME: The match is set for Friday, Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. in Memphis, Tennessee at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex. Fans can follow @badgerwsoccer on Twitter and Instagram for stories, posts and scoring updates.
