National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - News and Features

February 23, 1998

Women's panels discuss sites, automatic qualification

The Divisions I, II and III Women's Soccer Committees discussed site selection, automatic qualification and future sites during their February 1-6 meetings in Kansas City, Missouri.

In Division I, the committee voted to recommend that San Jose State University host the 1999 and 2000 championships. The committee also prepared for the possibility of an expanded bracket for the 1998 championship.

The Division II committee worked with the Division II Men's Soccer Committee to achieve commonality in regional alignment and the criteria used to rate individual teams. The committees also discussed the possibility of predetermined sites for future championships.

Automatic-qualification principles dominated discussion in the Division III committee, as did regional-bid allocation and team-selection criteria.

Actions taken by all three committees are listed below.

Division I

San Jose State would host the Division I championship for the first time and would provide a West Coast site for the championship for only the third time in the event's history, under the Division I Women's Soccer Committee's recommendation for the 1999 and 2000 site.

A record number of spectators witnessed the 1997 championship in Greensboro, North Carolina, and committee chair Kathy E. Lindahl of Michigan State University said the committee believes the number will continue to grow in the coming years.

"The sport of women's soccer is fortunate to have an institution located within a tremendous soccer community so dedicated to hosting these events," Lindahl said of San Jose State. "The West Coast has proven itself as a tremendous area for the student-athletes and spectators to enjoy the weekend of women's soccer. We expect San Jose State to continue the outstanding tradition of this event."

The committee determined that it would seek proposals for 2001 and beyond during the fall and winter of 1999 and select the site(s) during its February 2000 annual meeting.

The committee also prepared for the possibility of an expanded bracket after learning that the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet had approved an increase in the bracket for the fourth time in five years. The bracket, which was as small as 12 teams as recently as 1993, will grow to 48 teams in 1998 pending final approval from the Division I Business/Finance Cabinet, the Division I Management Council and the Division I Board of Directors.

In the new format, the first round would feature 32 teams paired geographically at campus sites, and 16 additional teams would receive first-round byes. Each round of competition thereafter would be conducted at campus sites until the semifinals and final, which would be conducted at a predetermined site (the University of North Carolina, Greensboro, in 1998).

If the 48-team bracket gains final approval, which could come as late as July, all conferences would receive automatic qualification and there would be no play-in games.

Should the proposal be delayed or defeated, however, the committee has determined automatic-qualifying conferences and play-in conferences for the 1998 championship. The automatic-qualifying conferences are the Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pacific-10, Southeastern, West Coast and Western Athletic Conferences; the Colonial Athletic Association; and the Ivy Group.

Twelve additional conferences were granted play-in games as follows (home conference listed first): Atlantic 10 Conference vs. Northeast Conference; Big West Conference vs. Missouri Valley Conference; Patriot League vs. Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference; Conference USA vs. Midwestern Collegiate Conference; America East vs. Trans America Athletic Conference; and Big South Conference vs. Southern Conference.

The committee recommended that all play-in games begin no later than noon local time Tuesday, November 10.

In another matter related to automatic qualification, the committee recommended that the ratings percentage index be the sole determinant for automatic qualification and play-in games.

Other highlights

The Division I Women's Soccer Committee also:

  • Requested that the ratings percentage index be provided during the regular season to assist the committee in its preliminary evaluation of strength-of-schedule.

  • Denied requests from the Big Sky and Mid-American Conferences for waivers of the two-year sponsorship requirement for purposes of determining automatic qualification.

  • Voted to recommend that the travel party be increased to 30 and the squad size be expanded to 22.

    Division II

    The Division II Women's Soccer Committee focused on the possibility of a predetermined site for future championships.

    The committee will ask the Division II Championships Committee for permission to further study the issue and to request proposals from specific sites.

    The committee also reviewed its team-selection criteria and voted to adopt a power-rating system similar to the one currently used for the Division II men's championship.

    The power-rating system is developed by ranking all teams in the division and all their opponents on a one-through-five basis, with a "one" being the highest rating.

    In other actions, the committee discussed the concept of automatic qualification but decided to wait until future championship bracket expansion before recommending that automatic qualification be implemented.

    Division III

    As other Division III sports committees have been charged to do, the Division III Women's Soccer Committee spent much of its meeting discussing Division III automatic qualifying principles and how automatic qualification would affect the championship.

    The committee reviewed sponsorship lists and designated conference members and independents, then discussed how the new Division III automatic-qualification principles could possibly dilute the quality of the tournament and make it difficult for the second- and third-place teams in a conference to be selected.

    The committee will continue to study the means to effectively incorporate the automatic-qualification principles without compromising the quality of the tournament. In that regard, the committee noted that by expanding the bracket to 48 teams, detrimental effects of the new automatic qualifying principles may be diminished.

    In matters related to the 1998 championship, the committee reviewed the current playoff format and agreed to retain the Wednesday first-round game with regionals being conducted the following Saturday and Sunday. Friday-Saturday regionals may be scheduled if the regionals include institutions that cannot play on Sunday.

    The committee also determined the allocation of regional bids as follows: Central (seven teams), Great Lakes (six), Mid-Atlantic (five), Metro (four), New England (six), New York (five), South (five) and West (two). The committee analyzed the regional berths using a ratio of one berth for every eight teams and by studying each region's strength.

    The committee also revised the team-selection criteria so that teams' won-lost records and strength of schedule will serve as the basis for selection. The following primary and secondary factors will then be considered (not in preferential order): Primary -- Head-to-head competition; results against common opponents; and results against teams already selected to participate in the championship. Secondary -- Results against teams under consideration.

    In other actions, the committee met with a representative from the National Intercollegiate Soccer Officials Association and re-emphasized the importance of the alternate official in championship competition and the need to have the alternate official's specific duties clearly outlined.

    The committee also recommended that officials' fees be increased by $10 per game in the championship.