For the first time in three years, Northwestern women’s soccer is going dancing.
The Wildcats made the NCAA tournament as an at-large bid and will be headed to Tuscaloosa to face No. 8-seeded Alabama (11-8-1) in the round of 64. If they beat the Crimson Tide, they will face the winner of No. 1 Stanford (16-1-2) and Cal Poly (10-2-9) in the second round — likely in Palo Alto, assuming that the Cardinal win.
Northwestern currently bears a 9-4-7 record with a marquee win over No. 5 RPI TCU, as well as ties
over No. 21 Iowa and No. 23 Wisconsin to boost its résumé. The Wildcats also made a run to the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, beating 10th-seeded USC before eventually falling 1-0 to eventual finalists and No. 6 Michigan State. The ‘Cats are one of nine Big Ten teams to earn a bid to this year’s NCAA Tournament, joining upper echelon of a stacked Big Ten conference to partake in postseason play.
Led by unanimous First-Team All-Big Ten selection Kennedy Roesch, who has nine goals and three assists on the season, Northwestern has made tremendous leaps from prior seasons — in 2023 and 2024, it missed the postseason entirely and didn’t play in the Big Ten Tournament.
When Northwestern made the NCAA tournament in 2022, it was a 4 seed, making it to the Sweet 16 before losing to regional hosts UCLA 1-0. Now, three years, later the ‘Cats will return to the Big Dance looking to make some noise but needing to get through some talented foes in order to do so.
The eight-seeded Crimson Tide will present a challenge for the Wildcats, however, having come off a big 2-0 win over then-No. 22 South Carolina before falling to No. 8 Vanderbilt, 2-1. Head coach Michael Moynihan and Co. will have to prepare for top goal-scorer Gianna Paul, who has 10 goals and 26 total points this season as a senior.
NU will await its time and date for the upcoming tournament, but will be heading to Tuscaloosa, Ala. in the coming days for its opening match.
