1998 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament

The 1998 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament (also known as the 1998 NCAA Women's College Cup) was the 17th annual single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of NCAA Division I women's collegiate soccer. The semifinals and championship game were played again at the UNCG Soccer Stadium in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Florida defeated North Carolina in the final, 1–0, to win their first national title. Coached by Becky Burleigh, the Gators finished the season 26–1. Florida won the championship in their first appearance in the College Cup, a feat matched only by USC in 2007.

The Gators' roster won the tournament's awards for both most outstanding offensive player and most outstanding defensive player, awarded to Danielle Fotopoulos and Meredith Flaherty, respectively. Fotopoulos and Flaherty, along with ten other players, were named to the All-tournament team.

The tournament's leading scorer, with 3 goals, was Meredith Florance from North Carolina.

Qualification

All Division I women's soccer programs were eligible to qualify for the tournament. The tournament field expanded again, this time increasing from 32 teams to 48.

Format To accommodate the sixteen additional teams, an additional round was added to the tournament for the thirty-two lowest-seeded teams. The top sixteen teams, meanwhile, were given a bye into the Second Round.

National seeds The eight national seeds were announced on November 8.

North Carolina (finals) Florida (champions) Santa Clara (semifinals) Notre Dame (quarterfinals) Portland (semifinals) Connecticut (quarterfinals) Penn State (quarterfinals) Dartmouth (quarterfinals)

Teams North Carolina RegionalSeedSchoolConference Berth TypeRecord1North CarolinaACCAutomatic21–08DartmouthIvy LeagueAutomatic14–1–2VirginiaACCAt-large13–6–2William & MaryCAAAutomatic16–2–2CharlotteConference USAAutomatic14–5–3FairfieldMAACAutomatic18–1GeorgiaSECAt-large13–5MarylandACCAt-large10–10–1South CarolinaSECAt-large11–6–1UCFTrans AmericaAutomatic12–7Wake ForestACCAt-large13–6–1WisconsinBig TenAt-large10–7–2 Portland RegionalSeedSchoolConference Berth TypeRecord4Notre DameBig EastAutomatic19–2–15PortlandWest CoastAt-large16–2–2San Diego StateWACAutomatic18–2–1NebraskaBig 12Automatic16–3–1AlabamaSECAt-large13–6–1KentuckySECAt-large09–8–3MichiganBig TenAt-large13–6–1MinnesotaBig TenAt-large13–5–1Texas A&MBig 12At-large13–7USCPac-10Auto (shared)13–6–1WashingtonPac-10At-large10–8–1XavierAtlantic 10Automatic12–6–2 Santa Clara RegionalSeedSchoolConference Berth TypeRecord 3Santa ClaraWest CoastAutomatic19–0–16ConnecticutBig EastAt-large19–1–2HartfordAmerica EastAutomatic16–4UCLAPac-10Auto (shared)17–3–1BYUWACAt-large19–3CaliforniaPac-10Auto (shared)13–7Central Conn. StateNortheastAutomatic12–7ColgatePatriotAutomatic13–6HarvardIvy LeagueAt-large11–4–1PacificBig WestAutomatic14–2–3StanfordPac-10At-large11–6–2SyracuseBig EastAt-large13–6–1 Florida RegionalSeedSchoolConference Berth TypeRecord2FloridaSECAutomatic21–17Penn StateBig TenAutomatic19–3–1ClemsonACCAt-large15–6BaylorBig 12At-large15–4–1EvansvilleMissouri ValleyAutomatic14–5–2IndianaBig TenAt-large13–7–1James MadisonCAAAt-large12–7–1NorthwesternBig TenAt-large14–4–1RadfordBig SouthAutomatic11–7–2UNC GreensboroSouthernAutomatic13–8–1VanderbiltSECAt-large16–5Wright StateMidwestern CollegiateAutomatic08–10–2

Bracket

All-tournament team Keisha Bell, Florida Lorrie Fair, North Carolina Meredith Flaherty, Florida (most outstanding defensive player) Meredith Florance, North Carolina Michelle French, Portland Danielle Fotopoulos, Florida (most outstanding offensive player) Angela Harrison, Portland Heather Mitts, Florida Cindy Parlow, North Carolina Tiffany Roberts, North Carolina Laurie Schwoy, North Carolina Nikki Serlenga, Santa Clara

See also 1998 NCAA Division I men's soccer tournament 1998 NCAA Division II women's soccer tournament 1998 NCAA Division III women's soccer tournament 1998 NAIA women's soccer tournament

References