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Bracket Set for 2026 ACC Field Hockey Championship

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North Carolina field hockey players celebrate together during a game.

The bracket and seeds for the 2026 Atlantic Coast Conference Field Hockey Championship were announced Friday following the conclusion of regular-season play. The tournament includes eight of the league’s nine field hockey programs and begins Tuesday, November 3, at Karen Shelton Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Co-regular season champions North Carolina (11-6, 6-2 ACC) earned the No. 1 seed in the 2026 ACC Field Hockey Championship and will face No. 8 seed Stanford (10-7, 2-6 ACC) at 10 a.m. ET in Tuesday’s quarterfinal round. In the regular-season matchup between the Tar Heels and Cardinal, North Carolina won 8-1 in Stanford, California. North Carolina finished as the ACC regular-season co-champions, sharing the title with Duke and Wake Forest, and earned the No. 1 seed via a tiebreaker.

No. 4 seed Syracuse (9-6, 4-4 ACC) will square off with No. 5 seed Louisville (10-8, 4-4 ACC) in Tuesday’s second quarterfinal matchup, beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET. The Orange defeated the then-No. 16 Cardinals, 4-2, on October 9, at J.S. Coyne Stadium in Syracuse, New York.

Wake Forest (13-5, 6-2 ACC) earned the No. 2 seed and a share of the ACC regular-season championship and will meet No. 7 seed Virginia (8-6, 3-5 ACC) at 3:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The Cavaliers defeated the Demon Deacons, 1-0 in overtime, in the regular-season meeting with Caitlin Connell scoring the game-winning goal.

No. 3 seed and ACC regular-season co-champions Duke (12-4, 6-2 ACC) will face No. 6 seed Boston College (8-9, 3-5 ACC) in the final quarterfinal matchup of the day, beginning at 6 p.m. ET. The Blue Devils defeated Boston College, 1-0, in Durham on September 27, with Callie Rogers scoring the lone goal.

The winners of Tuesday’s four quarterfinal contests will advance to the semifinals on Wednesday, November 4. The 2026 ACC Field Hockey Championship match will be played Friday, November 6, at 3 p.m. ET.

Each of the seven matches throughout the 2026 ACC Field Hockey Championship will be televised on ACC Network.

Admission to Karen Shelton Stadium is free for each game of the 2026 ACC Field Hockey Championship.

2026 ACC Field Hockey Championship (All Times Eastern)
Karen Shelton Stadium – Chapel Hill, N.C.

Quarterfinals – Tuesday, November 3
No. 1 North Carolina vs. No. 8 Stanford, 10 a.m., ACC Network
No. 4 Syracuse vs. No. 5 Louisville, 12:30 p.m., ACC Network
No. 2 Wake Forest vs. No. 7 Virginia, 3:30 p.m., ACC Network
No. 3 Duke vs. No. 6 Boston College, 6 p.m., ACC Network

Semifinals – Wednesday, November 4
1 and 3:30 p.m., ACC Network

Championship – Friday, November 6
3 p.m., ACC Network

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We Speak Men's College Basketball

ACC Men’s Basketball Opens 2026-27 Regular Season on Sunday

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Florida Gators guard Boogie Fland lays the ball up against Missouri defenders during a game.

The 74th season of Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Basketball begins on Sunday, November 1. Notre Dame tips off the nation’s college basketball schedule, as it plays Villanova on Sunday in the Eternal City Tip-Off in Rome, Italy. FOX has the national broadcast at 9:30 a.m. ET.

The Notre Dame game marks the first of 39 ACC non-conference games over the first eight days of the season. That includes four matchups against ranked opponents, highlighted by No. 14 Miami’s opener against top-ranked Florida in Tampa, Florida, on Monday, November 2, at 6 p.m. on ESPN2.

Also this week: Wake Forest plays at No. 24 Vanderbilt on Thursday at 6 p.m. on ESPN2, No. 9 Virginia battles No. 12 Arkansas in Washington, D.C., on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN and California takes on No. 10 Houston on Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET on The CW.

Four ACC teams are ranked in the preseason national polls: Duke (No. 2 AP/USA Today), Virginia (No. 9 AP/No. 10 USA Today), Louisville (No. 11 AP/USA Today) and Miami (No. 14 AP/No. 17 USA Today).

Upcoming Schedule

Sunday, November 1
Villanova vs. Notre Dame | FOX | 9:30 AM
Eternal City Tip-Off, Palazzo dello Sport, Rome, Italy

Monday, November 2
No. 1/1 Florida vs. No. 14/17 Miami | ESPN2 | 6 PM
Orion180 Tip-Off Classic, Benchmark International Arena, Tampa, Fla.
Army at No. 2/2 Duke | ESPNU | 6:30 PM
Western Carolina at North Carolina | ACCN | 7 PM
Stetson at Clemson | ACCNX | 7 PM
Rider at Pitt | ACCNX | 7 PM
New Haven at Syracuse | ACCNX | 7 PM
Campbell at NC State | ACCNX | 7:30 PM
Adams State at California | ACCNX | 8 PM
Southern at SMU | ACCNX | 8 PM
UMES at Wake Forest | ACCNX | 8 PM
FAMU vs. Florida State | ESPNU | 8:30 PM
Orion180 Tip-Off Classic, Benchmark International Arena, Tampa, Fla.
Chattanooga at No. 11/11 Louisville | ACCN | 9 PM
Eastern Washington at Stanford | ACCNX | 10 PM

Tuesday, November 3
Coppin State at Virginia Tech | ACCNX | 7 PM
Hampton at Georgia Tech | ACCNX | 7 PM
Wagner at Boston College | ACCNX | 7 PM
Drexel at No. 9/10 Virginia | ACCN | 7:30 PM

Wednesday, November 4
Radford at California | ACCNX | 9 PM

Thursday, November 5
Wake Forest at No. 24/21 Vanderbilt | ESPN2 | 6 PM
Buffalo at Pitt | ACCNX | 7 PM
Mercer at Virginia Tech | ACCNX | 7 PM
Mercyhurst at Notre Dame | ACCNX | 7 PM
Central Connecticut at Syracuse | ACCNX | 7 PM
Coastal Carolina at No. 2/2 Duke | ACCN | 8 PM
VMI at SMU | ACCNX | 8 PM

Friday, November 6
UMass vs. Boston College | ESPN+ | 4 PM
Basketball Hall of Fame Classic, TD Garden, Boston, Mass.
Northeastern at No. 9/10 Virginia | ACCN | 5 PM
Wofford at North Carolina | ACCN | 7 PM
American at Clemson | ACCNX | 7 PM
Troy at Florida State | ACCNX | 7 PM
Georgia Southern at Georgia Tech | ACCNX | 7 PM
East Tennessee State at NC State | ACCNX | 7 PM
Wagner at No. 14/17 Miami | ACCN | 9 PM
Oakland at Stanford | ACCNX | 10 PM

Saturday, November 7
Morehead State at No. 11/11 Louisville | ACCNX | Noon

Sunday, November 8
No. 12/13 Arkansas vs. No. 9/10 Virginia | ESPN | 1 PM
Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.
Penn State vs. Pitt | ESPN2 | 8 PM
The Palestra, Philadelphia, Pa.
No. 10/8 Houston vs. California | The CW | 8:30 PM
Tahoe Blue Events Center, Lake Tahoe, Nevada

All times Eastern. Rankings: AP/USA Today Coaches.

ACC Men’s Basketball Quick Hits

  • Following a vote of the league’s media, two-time reigning ACC champion Duke was selected as the preseason favorite to win the 2027 ACC Championship. The Blue Devils were followed in the poll by Virginia, Louisville, Miami and North Carolina.
  • Virginia’s Thijs De Ridder was named the Preseason ACC Player of the Year, while Duke’s Joakim Boumtje Boumtje was picked as Preseason Rookie of the Year.
  • ACC teams feature challenging schedules again this season and currently are scheduled to play 86 games against teams from other power conferences, the most of any league: 38 vs. SEC, 19 vs. Big 12, 15 vs. Big East, 14 vs. Big Ten. This does not count additional matchups that could come in MTEs.
  • 16 ACC schools are slated to play at least four non-conference games against power conferences.
  • ACC programs feature 28 players who earned All-Conference honors last season, including 18 first-team honorees.
  • 2026 All-ACC First Team honorees Malik Reneau (Miami) and Thijs De Ridder (Virginia) return for the 2026-27 season.
  • Five new head coaches will be featured on ACC sidelines this season: Luke Murray (BC), Scott Cross (GT), Michael Malone (UNC), Justin Gainey (NC State) and Gerry McNamara (Syracuse).

ACC Men’s Basketball History

  • Eight ACC teams earned 2026 NCAA Tournament bids: Clemson, Duke, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, NC State, SMU and Virginia.
  • It marked the third time in league history in which at least eight ACC teams earned NCAA berths: 2016-17 (nine) and 2017-18 (nine).
  • ACC Men’s Basketball has won 15 NCAA national championships, including three of the last 10. Teams currently in the ACC have combined to win eight of the last 24 NCAA crowns and 19 overall.
  • North Carolina leads the way with six national titles, followed by Duke (5), Louisville (2), NC State (2) and Cal, Stanford, Syracuse and Virginia (1 apiece).
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