Conference championship winners in field hockey and women's soccer
The GIST: If this weekend’s buffet of conference tournament title games gave you a hardware hangover, buckle up — that was just the beginning, as the field hockey and women’s soccer national tourneys begin this week. Here’s who clinched an auto-bid over the weekend.
🏑 Field hockey: The highlight of conference championship weekend was No. 1–seed UNC’s 2–0 dub over No. 2–seed Duke, marking the Tar Heels’ seventh (!!!) consecutive title. UNC clearly hasn’t skipped a beat under Erin Matson, the 23-year-old who took over as HC this year after leading the Tar Heels on the field for the last four seasons. Prodigy status.
- UNC also nabbed the top seed in the national tourney bracket, which was released late last night. Threatening their run at a natty repeat? Last year’s runner-up, No. 2–seed Northwestern. Wednesday’s opening round can’t come fast enough.
⚽ Women’s soccer: Out of yesterday’s one billion championship matches, the Big Ten’s was the most unexpected. As you read, No. 8–seed Iowa — who barely qualified for the tournament — finished their Cinderella run with a 1–0 win over No. 3–seed Wisconsin to secure the school’s second-ever title. Gatorade showers forever.
- During tonight’s selection show, Iowa and the 30 other auto-qualifying conference champs will be seeded, and the remaining 33 spots will go to at-large bids. Tune in to learn your squad’s path to the ’ship and gear up for the tourney’s kickoff on Friday.
