BYU Women’s Soccer Lands 12-Seed In 2021 NCAA Tournament

PROVO, Utah – BYU women’s soccer received a 12-seed in the 48-team NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament for the 2020-21 season. The Cougars earned a first-round bye and will face the winner of Virginia or Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

WE'RE GOING TO NORTH CAROLINA! pic.twitter.com/06SvBPp1lp

— BYU Women's Soccer (@byusoccer_w) April 19, 2021

As we’ve seen in other NCAA Championships this year, the women’s soccer tournament will take place in a controlled environment. The entire tournament will be in Cary, North Carolina, and the surrounding areas.

BYU received an at-large bid after posting an 11-3-1 record and a second-place finish in the WCC. The WCC Champion, Santa Clara, received an 11-seed in the tournament.

BYU will face Virginia or SIU-Edwardsville on May 1st at 5 p.m. (MDT).

BYU Women’s Soccer earns 21st NCAA Tournament appearance

The Cougars are led by NWSL Draft pick Mikayla Colohan who scored 11 goals this season. Behind her are Rachel McCarthy with nine and Cameron Tucket and Bella Folino, each with eight.

This is BYU’s 21st appearance all-time in the NCAA Tournament. In their last appearance in 2019, BYU advanced to the Elite Eight before falling to eventual National Champion, Stanford.

The NCAA women’s soccer season typically occurs in the fall, but it was delayed this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

UVU receives third NCAA Tournament bid

BYU isn’t the only team headed to the Women’s NCAA Tournament from the state of Utah. Utah Valley also received the automatic bid after winning their third WAC Tournament last week in Phoenix. The Wolverines will play in the opening round against the Memphis Tigers from the American Athletic Conference.

🎟 punched! Next stop NCAA Tournament! #GoUVU #UVU #WACwsoc #WACChampions #NCAASoccer pic.twitter.com/DtwGnIyKPC

— UVU Women's Soccer (@UVUwsoc) April 18, 2021

UVU finished the season with a 12-4-4 record, and Memphis was 8-3 this season. The Wolverines will play their first-round match at Johnson Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina.

Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and host of the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (Saturday from 12-3 pm) on KSL Newsradio. Follow him on Twitter: @Mitch_Harper.