2023 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament explained

Year:2023
Conference:Northeast Conference
Gender:women's
Teams:6
Matches:5
Attendance:2,970
Venue:Campus Sites, Hosted by Higher Seed
Champions:Central Connecticut
Titlecount:13th
Coach:Mick D'Arcy
Coachcount:11th
Broadcast:ESPN+
Mvp:Melina Ford
Mvpteam:Central Connecticut

The 2023 Northeast Conference women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the Northeast Conference held from October 29 to November 5, 2023. The five-match tournament took place at campus sites, with the higher seed hosting matches. The host for the matches was determined by seeding from regular season play. The six-team single-elimination tournament consisted of three rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The defending champions were the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights.[1] Fairleigh Dickinson was unable to defend their title, losing to Wagner in the First Round. Central Connecticut went on to win the tournament over Wagner in penalties in the Final.[2] This was the thirteenth Northeast Conference tournament title for the Central Connecticut women's soccer program, eleven of which have come under the direction of head coach Mick D'Arcy. This marks the fifth NEC title in six years for Central Connecticut.[3] As tournament champions, Central Connecticut earned the Northeast Conference's automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament.

Seeding

The top six teams from regular season play qualified for the 2023 Tournament. Teams were seeded based on their regular season records. Tiebreakers were used to determine seeds if teams were tied on regular season record. A tiebreaker was required to determine the second and third seeds as Central Connecticut and Fairleigh Dickinson finished the regular season tied with 24 points each. Central Connecticut won the regular season meeting between the two teams 2–1 on September 24 and was therefore the second seed. Fairleigh Dickinson would have to play in the First Round as the third seed.[4]

SeedSchoolConference RecordPoints
1Merrimack8–1–125
2Central Connecticut7–0–324
3Fairleigh Dickinson8–2–024
4Howard6–3–122
5Sacred Heart5–4–116
6Wagner5–5–015

Bracket

Note: Teams were re-seeded after the First Round.

Schedule

Final

Statistics

Goalscorers

All-Tournament team

Source:[5]

Player Team
Abbie BurgessCentral Connecticut
Melina Ford
Nicolle Santos
Victoria Violette
Melea EarleyHoward
Trinity Knox
Caroline HowlandMerrimack
Isabella Keogh
Kayla BarbosaWagner
Sam Hughes
Juliana Rafaniello
MVP in bold

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2022 Northeast Conference Women's Soccer Tournament. May 18, 2023. Northeast Conference. northeastconference.org.
  2. Web site: 2023 Northeast Conference Women's Soccer Tournament. December 29, 2023. Northeast Conference. northeastconference.org.
  3. Web site: NEC Women's Soccer Record Book. December 29, 2023. Northeast Conference. northeastconference.org.
  4. Web site: Merrimack Clinches First NEC Women's Soccer Regular Season Title. Northeast Conference. northeastconference.org. October 26, 2023. December 29, 2023.
  5. Web site: CCSU Adds Another Chapter To NEC Women's Soccer Legacy, Wins Record 13th Title In Dramatic Fashion. northeastconference.org. Northeast Conference. November 5, 2023. December 29, 2023.