For the first time since joining the Big 12, West Virginia will not enter the Big 12 Soccer Championship tournament at the top seed. Instead, the Mountaineers will take the second seed and a slightly tougher route to the title.
The tournament begins for WVU today, Nov. 1, at 6:30 ET, as they take on Texas Tech in the first round at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Kansas. The two teams battled to a two-overtime 1-1 draw on October 19 in Morgantown. The Red Raiders finished the 2017 regular season 9-6-3, 2-4-3 in the Big 12 but rank third in the conference with 11 goals scored.
WVU enters the tournament leading the conference with 18 goals scored and only four goals allowed. All-Big 12 First Team member Michaela Abam is tied for the lead in goals scored with four in conference play. She is also tied at the top with nine total points. Alli Magaletta, Big 12 co-Defensive Player of the Year Amandine Pierre-Louis, and Heather Kaleohi are tied in second with three goals in conference play.
The winner of the WVU-Texas Tech match will play on Friday, Nov. 3, at 8 p.m. ET against the TCU-Kansas winner. The 2017 Big 12 Soccer Championship game is scheduled for Sunday, Nov. 5, at 4 p.m. on FS1. The first two rounds can be seen on the Big 12 Digital Network.
The Mountaineers captured the Big 12 regular season and tournament titles last year in route to a national title game appearance. Currently, WVU is ranked No. 7 in the United Soccer Coaches poll and is the No. 5 team in the NCAA RPI rankings.