MILWAUKEE, Wis. -- The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's soccer team drew a road game at No. 25 Notre Dame in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the team learned Monday during the tournament selection show.
The Panthers (8-8-1) and the Irish (13-5-2) will square off Friday evening at Alumni Stadium in South Bend, Ind. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. eastern time.
"Just having your name up on that board is a great experience and hopefully everyone understands the great opportunity they have ahead of them," UWM head coach Greg Henschel said. "You just want a chance to play, a chance to compete. Notre Dame is a big program with a huge history, we're just happy to get into the tournament and compete."
The winner of the matchup will then advance in the bracket to face the winner of No. 8 Wake Forest and Georgia Southern. That part of the tournament will likely be played at Wake Forest, should the Demon Deacons advance to that point.
Milwaukee is making its 10th NCAA Tournament appearance and a school-record fifth straight. The Panthers have previously been sent to South Bend for tourneys in 2006 and 2008. In 2006, UWM advanced to the second round and played the No. 1 Irish tough before falling 1-0.
This season, UND is 13-5-2 with losses to common opponents Wisconsin and Marquette, both by 1-0 scores. The Irish got an at-large berth into the tournament and were ranked 25th in the NSCAA National Poll released last week.
The Panthers are taking advantage of the Horizon League's automatic bid into the tournament, claiming a fifth-straight league tournament championship over the weekend. Milwaukee posted 1-0 double-overtime victories over Loyola and Wright State to take the crown. Tournament MVP Krissy Dorre scored both goals for UWM and is joined on the field by Horizon League Player of the Year Helen Steinhauser and All-League first-teamers Kelsey Holbert and Kelly Lewers. Dorre was a second-team selection alongside Amy Kauffung.
Milwaukee is making its 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and ninth with the Horizon League's automatic berth. The Panthers made previous tournament trips in 1997, 2001-2002, 2005-06, 2008-11.
(Release courtesy of UWMPanthers.com)
