BYU Seeks To Reach NCAA DI Women’s Soccer Championship Semi-finals

BYU continues to make noise in the NCAA DI Women’s Soccer Championships, but can the Cougars continue their momentum and make history at the same time by reaching their first-ever NCAA DI Women’s Soccer Championship semi-finals? Heck, can they go one better and reach a first-ever tournament final? 

The fourth-seeded BYU is on the cusp of the NCAA DI Women’s Soccer Championship semi-finals with only South Carolina standing in their way. BYU will host the Elite 8 game against South Carolina on Saturday, and they’re favored to win according to the oddsmakers.

BYU has never reached the semis of the competition though, so a win over South Carolina would represent a historical achievement for the program and, at the same time, keep their hope of winning it all for the first time alive too. 

Coming to a field near you?? pic.twitter.com/fA4GL7aRtI

— BYU Women's Soccer (@byusoccer_w) November 24, 2021

BYU is hosting the quarterfinals only for the second time in program history. Having home advantage is certainly going to be key for the Cougars as they’ve lost only one game with home-field advantage all season.

BYU defied the odds with an upset win over top-seeded Virginia on the road in the third round of the tournament at the weekend. Senior Cameron Tucker struck the go-ahead goal in the 47th minute of the game and the defense did the rest to deliver the 1-0 victory.

Goalkeeper Cassidy Smith, who’s in her final year at BYU, loomed large between the posts, making three key saves that kept BYU on the front foot throughout the game. 

In winning, BYU extended its winning form to five-straight games. Separately, the victory over the Cavaliers avenges last season’s loss to Virginia which eliminated the Cougars from the competition. 

The Cougars high-octane offense which leads the country with 3.48 goals per game has produced 11 goals through the first three rounds while the stout defense has conceded merely one goal.  

The Cougars offense is led by senior forward Cameron Tucker and senior midfielder Mikayla Colohan – both have 16 goals apiece which puts them sixth overall in the nation. As well, Colohan ranks fourth with 14 assists in the country.

Colohan currently has 51 goals in her career which is the third-best in the school’s history and 140 total points. She enjoyed a hat-trick performance against Alabama Crimson Tide in the second round of the tournament.  Indeed, it’s these kinds of stats and performances that have led NWSL’s Orlando Price to draft Colohan.

BYU’s defense is backed by keeper Smith. The seventh-year senior is in the midst of a record-book season. She has 47 saves and 12 goals allowed in 21 games this year, as well a .833 save percentage that is the best since top-rated BYU keeper, Rachel Boaz, finished at .900 in 2015-16.

The hype and excitement surrounding BYU are palpable, and it’s felt nowhere more so than within the team as they’re thrilled to have brought the quarterfinals to South Field.

“This is home; it’s where we play our best soccer,” said Smith. “We’re excited to host South Carolina here, and to show them what South Field is like.

“We play for our fans. They bring so much energy and we try to rise to the occasion and match their energy.”

The South Carolina Gamecocks are riding a three-game winning streak in Saturday’s quarterfinal matchup. The Gamecocks opened the tournament with an upset over the No.2 seed North Carolina, beating their Tar Heels 1-0.  North Carolina went into the tournament as one of the team’s to spot in the betting, according to multiple best online sportsbooks.

South Carolina backed up the upset over North Carolina with a 3-0 win over Hofstra in the second round, and then they extended their positive run of form with a 2-0 win over Penn State in the third round. 

The Gamecocks have been similarly stingy on defense, allowing just one goal through the competition. Catherine Barry leads the team this season with eight goals while Ryan Gareis has nine assists and four goals. Lauren Chang has a team-leading 10 assists.

South Carolina seeks to carry the momentum at the expense of BYU, but the odds are stacked against them. That said, the last time BYU and South Carolina went head-to-head was in the third round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament. The Gamecocks came away with the 1-0 win that time.

The NCAA DI women’s soccer championship quarterfinals kick off on Friday, November 26, and wrap up on Saturday, November 27. BYU’s match against South Carolina is set for 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 27 at South Field – the last of four fixtures marking the final eight of the tournament. 

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