The SLU Billikens were named a No. 8 regional seed and will host a first-round game against Kansas on Friday. (Photo: Thomas Grove)

Nora Nichols
Staff Writer

The 2024 NCAA Women’s Soccer National Championship Tournament bracket was released on Monday, with Saint Louis University — the seven-time Atlantic 10 Conference champions — named as one the nation’s No. 8 regional seeds.

That ranking means Saint Louis will host at least one game — a first-round game — in the NCAA Tournament. The Billikens will face Kansas on Friday, November 15, in a matchup at Hermann Stadium.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., with the winner advancing to the second round to face the winner of the No. 1 seed USC versus Sacramento State match that will be played on Sunday.

If USC wins, the second round match will be played in California. But if SLU wins and SC loses, the second round contest would be played in St. Louis.

The NCAA Championship appearance is Saint Louis’ ninth overall and seventh in succession. The Billikens earned an automatic tournament bid by winning a seventh consecutive Atlantic 10 Championship title, topping Massachusetts 3-1 in Sunday’s tournament final following victories of 2-0 over Davidson in the quarterfinals and 2-0 over Saint Joseph’s in the semifinals.

Saint Louis (14-1-6), which posted a 7-0-3 record in winning the A-10 regular-season crown, carries a 16-game unbeaten streak (12-0-4) and a three-game winning streak into the national tournament. The Billikens are fourth in the nation in save percentage (.875), sixth in goals against average (0.48), seventh in goal differential (plus-38) and corner kicks per game (7.48), ninth in winning percentage (.810), 10th in shutout percentage (.619) and 17th in goals per game (2.29).

After tying for sixth place (6-4-1) in the Big 12 regular-season standings, Kansas (12-5-4) captured the league’s automatic NCAA bid by winning the Big 12 Championship. The Jayhawks defeated Arizona State 2-1, West Virginia 1-0 (2 OT), Texas Tech 2-1 and TCU 1-0 in tournament play. Those four victories extended KU’s winning streak to eight games, which is tied for the second-longest current winning streak in NCAA Division I.

The Billikens have a 1-5-1 record in the all-time series with Kansas. The teams last met in Lawrence, Kan., in 2021, with the Jayhawks winning 2-0. The most recent meeting in St. Louis occurred in 2017 and resulted in a 1-1 draw in front of 5,205 fans at Hermann Stadium, a record attendance for a collegiate women’s soccer game in the state of Missouri.

Friday’s meeting will be the second between SLU and Kansas in the NCAA Championship. In a 2018 first-round game, the Jayhawks prevailed 2-1 in double overtime in Lawrence.

2024 SLU BILLIKENS WOMEN’S SOCCER SCHEDULE

DateTimeAtOpponentLocationTournament
November 15, 2024 (Friday)7 pmHomeKansasHermann StadiumNCAA Tournament – 1st Round
November 22, 2024 (Friday)TBDTBDTBDTBDNCAA Tournament – 2nd Round