Five Pac-12 Women's Soccer Programs earn bids to 2023 NCAA Tournament

2023 NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament Bracket | Printable | Pac-12 Record Book

INDIANAPOLIS, IND. -- Five Pac-12 Women’s Soccer programs earned bids to join the 64-team field for the 2023 NCAA Division I Championship, announced by the NCAA Selection Committee on Monday afternoon. This marks the 24th season in Pac-12 history that at least five programs have been selected to compete in the NCAA Tournament. Pac-12 Champion UCLA, who secured the conference’s automatic bid after an unbeaten 10-0-1 league mark, was joined by at-large selections Stanford, USC, Colorado and Arizona State. First round matchups are scheduled to take place on Nov. 10-12.

The reigning National Champion, UCLA (16-1-1, 10-0-1), will make its 27th Tournament appearance as the Bruins look to become the first team to repeat since North Carolina won it back-to-back in 2008 and 2009. Chosen as the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive year, the 14-time Pac-12 Champions and two-time National Champion will open its run hosting Big West Champion UC Irvine, who won its third straight league title, in Bruin territory. The Bruins have now seen all but two NCAA Tournaments since their first appearance in 1995 (1996; 2015). A second round matchup would bring No. 8 Gonzaga or Idaho to Los Angeles.

Stanford (15-0-4, 8-0-3), the Pac-12 runner-up and the only conference program to see a top-10 RPI rating for the whole season, claimed its 32nd tournament berth, good for the second-most of any Power 5 program (North Carolina - 38). Picking up a No. 2 seed and hosting duties, the Cardinal will welcome WCC runner-up Pepperdine for a chance to continue their 25-match undefeated home streak at Cagan Stadium. A win for the Cardinal could mean a round-two matchup against No. 2 Texas Tech or Florida Gulf Coast. 

The No. 8-seeded USC Trojans (10-4-3, 6-2-3) tack on another year to their league-best consecutive tournament appearances, now participating in their 10th in a row and 22nd tournament in program history. The Trojans' will welcome the WAC Champions Grand Canyon to Soni McAlister Field. USC, which has advanced past at least the first round 13 times in 22 all-time appearances, could see a trip to No. 1 BYU or a visit by Utah State if the Trojans advance to round two of tournament play. 

After tallying their most wins since 2018 (13), the Colorado Buffaloes (13-4-3, 5-3-3) received an at-large bid and will open the program's 13th postseason run against No. 8-seeded Texas A&M. The matchup against the Aggies, who went undefeated in the SEC conference season, marks the Buffs' first trip to the postseason since 2020. Potential second round foes could be No. 1-seeded Florida State or Morehead State.

Arizona State received the conference’s final at-large bid, marking the Sun Devils' 10th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The West Coast matchup will bring the Sun Devils to the home of the two-time National Champion, No. 7-seeded Santa Clara, who will be making its 33rd tournament appearance. A victory in California would lead to a second round matchup against No. 2 Penn State or Central Conn. State. 

The programs enter the tournament hoping to add to the Pac-12’s postseason legacy:

• Pac-12 programs have combined for seven national championships, all since 2007 (Stanford 2011, 2017, 2019; USC 2007 & 2016; UCLA 2013; 2023) – tying for the most of any conference over that span (ACC - 7).
• A Pac-12 program has reached the NCAA Women’s College Cup final in 12 of the last 23 years.
• Pac-12 programs have combined for 28 all-time College Cup appearances, including 24 since 2000.

The 2023 NCAA Division I Women's College Cup will be held at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina. Two single-elimination semifinal games will be held on Friday, December 1, 2023. The two teams winning in the semifinals will advance and compete in the single-elimination national championship game, which will take place on Monday, December 4, 2023.