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Forty Teams Chase the Red Banner as NAIA Women’s Soccer National Tournament Field Is Set for Decatur

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Two Kalamazoo players in orange jerseys and a Baldwin Wallace player in yellow challenge for the ball during a women's college soccer match

The bracket is set and the road to Decatur is open. Forty NAIA women’s soccer programs learned their path Friday when the 43rd national tournament field was revealed, with every conference represented, three programs in the tournament for the first time, and first-round play starting November 19.

The 40-team field for the 43rd annual NAIA Women’s Soccer National Tournament was revealed on the NAIA Women’s Soccer Selection Show on Friday afternoon, November 13, 2026.

The Field at a Glance

All 19 conferences are represented. The Crossroads League and the Heart of America Athletic Conference lead the field with five teams each.
Three programs are making their first-ever national tournament appearance: Simpson (Calif.), Huston-Tillotson (Texas) and Clarke (Iowa).
Keiser (Fla.) is making its 17th tournament appearance; William Carey (Miss.) and Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) are making their 16th.
Six programs in the field have previously won an NAIA women’s soccer national championship, combining for 15 national titles.
The field’s combined record is 553-114-92, a .789 winning percentage (following .783 in 2023, .794 in 2024 and .786 in 2025).

Schedule and Format

First round: Thursday, November 19, with eight matchups involving 16 teams.
Second round: Saturday, November 21. The 16 first-round teams must win twice to advance.
Twenty-four teams received a bye into the second round. Second-round winners advance to the final site in Decatur, Alabama.
First- and second-round matches are broadcast by the host institution, free on the NAIA Network.
The first- and second-round schedule will be posted on the NAIA Women’s Soccer Championship page once match times are finalized by each host. The selection show can be rewatched on the NAIA’s YouTube channel.

The Complete 40-Team Field

Bellevue (Neb.) — Continental Athletic Conference (Independents) — Tournament Champions
Benedictine (Kan.) — Heart of America Athletic Conference — At Large
Campbellsville (Ky.) — Mid-South Conference — At Large
Central Methodist (Mo.) — Heart of America Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Clarke (Iowa) — Heart of America Athletic Conference — Regular Season Champion
College of Idaho — Cascade Collegiate Conference — Regular Season Champion
Columbia (Mo.) — American Midwest Conference — Tournament Champions
Concordia (Neb.) — Great Plains Athletic Conference — Regular Season Runner-Up
Cumberlands (Ky.) — Mid-South Conference — Tournament Champions
Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) — Great Southwest Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Friends (Kan.) — Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Grace (Ind.) — Crossroads League — At Large
Graceland (Iowa) — Heart of America Athletic Conference — At Large
Hastings (Neb.) — Great Plains Athletic Conference — Regular Season Champion
Huston-Tillotson (Texas) — HBCU Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Indiana Wesleyan — Crossroads League — Tournament Champions
John Brown (Ark.) — Sooner Athletic Conference — At Large
Keiser (Fla.) — The Sun Conference — Tournament Champions
Life (Ga.) — Southern States Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) — Mid-South Conference — At Large
LSU Alexandria (La.) — Red River Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Madonna (Mich.) — Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Marian (Ind.) — Crossroads League — At Large
MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) — Heart of America Athletic Conference — At Large
Morningside (Iowa) — Great Plains Athletic Conference — At Large
Oklahoma Wesleyan — Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference — Regular Season Champion
Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) — Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Our Lady of the Lake (Texas) — Red River Athletic Conference — At Large
Rio Grande (Ohio) — River States Conference — Tournament Champions
Science and Arts (Okla.) — Sooner Athletic Conference — Tournament Champions
Simpson (Calif.) — California Pacific Conference — Tournament Champions
Southeastern (Fla.) — The Sun Conference — At Large
Southern Oregon — Cascade Collegiate Conference — Tournament Runners-Up
Spring Arbor (Mich.) — Crossroads League — At Large
Taylor (Ind.) — Crossroads League — At Large
Tennessee Southern — Southern States Athletic Conference — At Large
Tennessee Wesleyan — Appalachian Athletic Conference — Tournament Runners-Up
The Master’s (Calif.) — Great Southwest Athletic Conference — At Large
Truett McConnell (Ga.) — Appalachian Athletic Conference — Regular Season Champion
William Carey (Miss.) — Southern States Athletic Conference — Regular Season Champion

First and Second Round Hosts

University of the Cumberlands
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott Campus
Hastings College
Indiana Wesleyan University
Keiser University Flagship Residential Campus
Lindsey Wilson University
Marian University
Spring Arbor University
William Carey University
Grace College
Columbia College
Truett McConnell University
Southeastern University
John Brown University
College of Idaho
Life University

Second-round winners move on to the final site in Decatur, Alabama, where the survivors of the 40-team field will settle the chase for the Red Banner.

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North Carolina Faces Virginia Sunday for the 2026 ACC Women’s Soccer Championship

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23 hours ago

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November 14, 2026

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North Carolina Tar Heels women's soccer players in white warmup tops laughing together on the field before a match at Dorrance Field

North Carolina chases a record 23rd ACC tournament title and Virginia chases its first since 2012 when the Tar Heels and Cavaliers meet Sunday at noon ET in Cary on ESPNU.

Second-seeded North Carolina and fifth-seeded Virginia will play for the 2026 Ally ACC Women’s Soccer Championship Sunday at noon ET from First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park.

The Tar Heels and Cavaliers will meet in the title match for the fifth time, with previous matchups in 1990, 2004, 2005 and 2019. North Carolina is 3-1 in those matchups, with UVA’s lone win coming in 2004. It will also be the first time since a No. 2 seed has faced a No. 5 seed in the final since 2012, when fifth-seeded Virginia defeated second-seeded Maryland, 4-0. That season was the last time the Cavaliers have won the ACC title.

UNC is in the ACC Championship final for the 30th time and seeks its record 23rd tournament title. The Tar Heels have dropped their last three final appearances (2020, 2022 and 2024) and have not won the ACC crown since defeating Virginia in the 2019 title match. UNC looks to become the first No. 2 seed since Florida State in 2022 to win the women’s soccer championship.

Virginia returns to the ACC title match for the first time since 2021, having won the championship twice (2004 and 2012). The Cavaliers have not allowed a goal in their last four matches and five of their last six contests. It marks the first time a team has advanced to the title match from the first round without allowing a goal since 2020.

Sunday’s final will be broadcast live on ESPNU at noon ET. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 on game day and are available online only; no walk-up sales will be available.

2026 Ally ACC Women’s Soccer Championship

First Round | Sunday, Nov. 8 – Campus Sites

#6 Duke 5, at #3 Wake Forest 4 (OT)
#5 Virginia 3, at #4 Florida State 0

Semifinals | Thursday, Nov. 12 – First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)

#5 Virginia 1, #1 Notre Dame 0
#2 North Carolina 1, #6 Duke 0

Final | Sunday, Nov. 15 – First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)

#2 North Carolina vs. #5 Virginia | Noon | ESPNU
All times Eastern

Noting ACC Women’s Soccer

• The 40th season of ACC Women’s Soccer got underway on Wednesday, August 12, while the 39th Ally ACC Women’s Soccer Championship concludes Sunday, November 15, with the championship final from First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park.

• The ACC has seven teams in the latest IWSOC/United Soccer Coaches Poll, the most of any conference.

• The poll includes No. 2 North Carolina, No. 4 Notre Dame, No. 6 Wake Forest, No. 10 Virginia, No. 12 Duke, No. 16 Florida State and No. 16 Stanford (tie). Clemson and Virginia Tech are receiving votes.

• The ACC has eight teams ranked among the top 30 in the RPI, also the most of any conference.

• The RPI top 30 includes No. 1 North Carolina, No. 5 Wake Forest, No. 7 Notre Dame, No. 11 Virginia, No. 13 Duke, No. 15 Stanford, No. 28 Florida State and No. 29 Clemson.

• Four ACC teams were named to the initial NCAA Women’s Soccer Committee Top 16, announced on Monday, October 26: No. 1 North Carolina, No. 3 Wake Forest, No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 11 Stanford.

• ACC teams have combined for 86 non-conference wins and a .801 winning percentage, both of which lead the nation.

• A total of 12 ACC standouts were named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Mid-Season Watch List, the most among all conferences. The next-closest conference had six.

• Florida State earned the ACC’s 27th national championship (24th since the ACC began sponsoring women’s soccer) a season ago, bringing the total to 33 national championships among current ACC institutions. No school outside the ACC has won more than two championships.

• The Seminoles defeated Stanford, 1-0, in the 2025 national championship match, marking the second straight year that two ACC teams met for the national title and the third consecutive championship match featuring current ACC members.

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