LATHAM, N.Y. - The Penn State Harrisburg women’s soccer team returns to the NCAA Championship for the second-straight season and will square off against Christopher Newport University in the Opening Round of the tournament. That game will take place at 4:30 PM on Saturday in Newport News, Va.
Joining those two teams in the pod are Rowan (13-1-4) and Miseracordia (15-4-1) who will compete at 7 PM on Saturday. The winner of those two contests will play on Sunday at 6 PM.
Find the full tournament bracket here: NCAA WOMEN’S SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP
Penn State Harrisburg (14-5-4) repeated as United East Champions to earn the conference’s automatic qualifier. It was a game that mimicked the 2024 season, with a draw after two overtime periods leading to penalty kicks. The Lions saw two players make and goalkeeper Alexis Valenta make a couple huge saves to help the squad hoist the trophy once again.
The offense has been firing on all cylinders for Harrisburg as their 199 total points this season ranks 10th in the country. The team play has been even more impressive as they’ve managed 57 assists which ranks seventh in Division III. Diana Pon has played a major role in that as she ranks 11th in the nation for assists (11) and 14th in the nation for total goals (17).
Defensively, the Lions led the conference in shutout percentage, holding opponents scoreless 60.9% of the time. Harrisburg has held their foes to a combined 18 goals against all year and a total of zero goals against within conference play.
Christopher Newport (14-1-3) earns its way into the big dance via automatic qualifier as well, winning the Coast-2-Coast Conference. The Captains, who rank 10th in the latest national poll, also boast a booming defense as they have allowed just five goals across 18 games this year. That has been helped by a league-leading 13 shutouts posted.
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The United East boasts 14 NCAA Division III full member institutions which include: Cairn University, Cedar Crest College, Gallaudet University, Keystone College, Lancaster Bible College, Notre Dame of Maryland University, Penn College, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks, Penn State Brandywine, Penn State Harrisburg, St. Mary's College of Maryland, University of Valley Forge, and Wilson College. For more information, please visit gounitedeast.com.