TCU soccer has once again qualified for the NCAA Women’s College Cup after their Big 12-runner up finish.
“Excited to be back in the NCAA tournament for the fourth year in a row, excited for the program and my staff as well,” head coach Eric Bell said. “They did a tremendous job throughout the course of the season.”
This marks the fourth-ever appearance for the Frogs and the fourth in a row. Last season, TCU had their first-ever tournament win: a 2-1 comeback finish over BYU. The Frogs were eliminated in the second round by Texas A&M.
Five other Big 12 teams also qualified, including Big 12 regular-season champion Oklahoma State at a three seed. Big 12 postseason champion Kansas also at a three seed. Texas Tech, Texas and West Virginia all earned at a No. 4 seeds.
TCU’s performance in the Big 12 tournament is likely the strongest indicator for a selection, as the Frogs reached the Big 12 tournament finals, where they fell to Kansas.
“I think our group really grew up over the last few weeks, where we basically had our backs against the wall, and we knew we had to get some good results in order to get to this point,” Bell said. “Some of these last few games in the Big 12 tournament were like NCAA tournament games for us. It’s basically a do or die situation and we knew we needed to advance in order to advance to the NCAA tournament.”
The Frogs will face the Arizona Wildcats in the third round, a team TCU lost 4-3 on the road earlier this season.
“Our group is really chomping at the bit to get back after them, and see if we can rectify the score,” Bell said.
Arizona finished seventh in the Pac-12 and was the second-lowest team of eight from the conference to qualify for the tournament.
TCU will face the Wildcats in Tucson, Arizona on Saturday at 7 p.m.