Utah Soccer Starts NCAA Tournament Trek Friday

Utah at No. 12 Duke
Date: Friday, November 15
Location: Durham, N.C.
Kickoff: 6 p.m. ET
Live Stream: ACCNX.com
Live Stats: GoDuke.com
WATCH | LIVE STATS | TICKETS

KICKOFF
Utah Soccer will travel to No. 12 Duke for the First Round of the 2019 NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Championship. Kick-off is scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. ET/4 p.m. MT

The Utes, making their eighth appearance in the tournament under head coach Rich Manning, were one of nine teams from the Pac-12 to earn a berth, a conference record. Utah placed eighth in the conference this season, closing with wins over No. 21 Washington and Colorado

NCAA HISTORY
The Utes advanced to the NCAA Regional Semifinals in 2016 after winning two games in the tournament for the first time in program history. Utah is 3-7 all-time in the NCAA Tournament and has won once away from home, 2-1 over No. 10 Florida State in Los Angeles during that same '16 run.

SERIES PERSPECTIVE
Utah did play at Duke during the 2017 season, suffering a 2-1 loss to the 11th-ranked Blue Devils. Holly Daugirda and Haylee Cacciacarne registered assists in the contest. The Utes are 1-2 all-time against members of the Atlantic Coast Conference after losing at Clemson earlier this year.

NELSON NEXT LEVEL IN NET
Carly Nelson was named Third Team All-Pac-12 after leading the Pac-12 with 10 shutouts (13th nationally), 101 saves (24th nationally), and 1895:43 minutes played (eighth nationally). She also ranked second in the conference with an .808 save percentage

The senior from Lindon became the first Ute in almost two decades to top 100 saves in a single season. She ranks fifth all-time with 269 career stops.

She currently owns 23 shutouts for her career, third all-time and set the single-season mark for blankings by a Utah goalkeeper

Nelson was named the Pac-12 Goalkeeper of the Week on Sep. 24 after a pair of shutouts against Butler and San Diego. It was the fourth time she earned the award.

The Ute stopper combined with Utah's defense to blank its last four opponents in non-conference play. This was the longest shutout streak for a Ute defense since the 2006 season (9 games)

DUNN DOING WORK
After one point in her first two seasons (40 games), Ireland Dunn broke out during her junior campaign with 16 points, second most on the team. In Pac-12 play, she led the league with six helpers and ranked ninth in points.

This year, she leads the team in goals and points while scoring in the last three games, including a pair of game-winners. She is the first Ute to score five times in Pac-12 play since 2016.

In 2018, Dunn became the first Utah player with at least five assists in conference play since Kelly Isleib in 2008 and her seven assists were the most by a Ute since Isleib's school record 13 in 2007.

LEACHMAN LEADS THE LINE
Leachman, a defensive stalwart for the Utes, was named Second Team All-Pac-12 and earned Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week honors after leading a season-ending shutout of Colorado.

In the final home game of her career, Leachman played the full 90 minutes of Utah's 10th shutout of the season. She successfully completed 33 passes at an 85 percent rate, made eight interceptions, won seven of eight defensive challenges and both her tackles.

The Long Beach, California native has started every game this season and played every minute in all but two contests. She is joined on the backline by two more senior standouts, Aleea Gwerder and Haylee Cacciacarne.

Gwerder has started 67 matches and every one over the last two seasons after suffering an injury as a sophomore. She is also having her best offensive season with a pair of goals and assists. Cacciacarne has started every game over the last three seasons as Leachman's partner in the middle. She scored the winner over No. 10 FSU in the 2016 NCAA Tournament

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Haylee Cacciacarne

Holly Daugirda

Ireland Dunn

Aleea Gwerder

Carly Nelson

Completed Event: Soccer versus BYU on October 30, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Completed Event: Soccer versus Kansas on October 26, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Completed Event: Soccer versus Arizona State on October 23, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 1

Completed Event: Soccer at #10 Baylor on October 19, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Completed Event: Soccer versus #21 Colorado on October 16, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 2

Completed Event: Soccer at Arizona on October 10, 2025 , Win , 1, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer at Houston on October 5, 2025 , Win , 1, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer at UCF on October 2, 2025 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Completed Event: Soccer versus West Virginia on September 27, 2025 , Tie , 1, to, 1

The University of Utah Athletics