FOREST, Va. – The Old Dominion Athletic Conference has announced the field for the 2026 Women's Soccer Championship, and second-ranked Washington and Lee is the top seed for a third year in a row.
The Generals wrapped up their third straight conference regular season title on Wednesday, finishing the regular season with an 8-1-1 record in conference play to go along with an overall mark of 13-1-2. Lynchburg is the No. 2 seed for the tournament after tying with the Generals for first in the conference standings, but losing the head-to-head tiebreaker. Batten completed the conference season with a 7-0-3 ODAC record (24 pts), while Bridgewater wraps up the Top 4 teams with a 7-1-2 conference mark (23 pts).
The Top-4 teams will host quarterfinal action this weekend against seeds 5-8. Randolph-Macon (5) will travel to Bridgewater, Shenandoah (6) will play at Batten, Roanoke (7) heads to Lynchburg and Randolph (8) will face W&L to complete the championship field.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE:
Quarterfinals | Saturday, October 31
Game 1: Randolph at Washington and Lee, 1:00 p.m.
Game 2: Randolph-Macon at Bridgewater, 11:30 a.m.
Game 3: Shenandoah at Batten, 1:00 p.m.
Game 4: Roanoke at Lynchburg, 4:00 p.m.
Semifinals | Wednesday, November 4 | at Higher Seeds | Times TBD
Game 5: Game 1 Advancing Team vs. Game 2 Advancing Team
Game 6: Game 3 Advancing Team vs. Game 4 Advancing Team
Championship | Saturday, November 7 | at Highest Remaining Seed | Time TBD
Game 7: Game 5 Advancing Team vs. Game 6 Advancing Team
GENERALS TEAM ODAC CHAMPIONSHIP OUTLOOK:
The Generals begin their quest for a third consecutive tournament championship on Saturday when they host eighth-seeded Randolph at 1:00 p.m. W&L claimed the regular season meeting against the WildCats by a final score of 6-0 in Lynchburg.
If the Generals advance to the semifinal round, they will match up against either fourth-seeded Bridgewater or fifth-seeded Randolph-Macon. The Eagles handed the Generals their only loss of the season on October 28, 1-0, just one week after W&L handled the Yellow Jackets by a 6-0 final on Watt Field.
On the other side of the bracket, the Generals combined for a 3-0-1 record against Lynchburg, Batten, Shenandoah and Roanoke, outscoring the four teams by a combined 8-3. Only Batten was able to secure points against the Generals in a 1-1 draw in Lexington on October 17.
GENERALS' PLAYERS TO WATCH:
The Generals' offense has been led through the season by the dominant efforts of juniors
Megan Zimmerman and
Elizabeth Zimmerman and senior
Emily Burke, who have combined for 11 of the team's 13 game-winning goals this season.
Megan Zimmerman leads the way with 29 points on 11 goals and seven assists, while
Elizabeth Zimmerman has 25 points on nine goals and seven helpers. Burke has scored a career-high 10 goals this season, plus three assists for a total of 23 points. It is the first time since 2008 that the Generals have three players with at least 20 points.
Junior
Maren Brown joins that trio in double-digit points with 12 (5g, 2a), with senior
Abigail Watson and first-year
Sydney Valentine with eight points on three goals and two assists each. Junior defender
Avery Hannah has also provided offensive support with four assists, trailing only the Zimmermans for the most on the team.
W&L's starting lineup has been consistent all year, with eight players starting every game, plus Hannah with 15 starts and senior
Shay Bowman with 13. Among those eight players are the Zimmermans, Burke and senior
Amelia Manke, juniors
Aubrey Dunbar,
Kate McEnroe and
Elizabeth Perri and first-year
Alex Van Arsdale.
McEnroe headlines the defensive unit with a 0.43 goals-against average this season and a 0.867 save percentage across 1,251:18 of action. McEnroe has five clean sheets this season, while the strong play of Perri, Bowman, Van Arsdale, Hannah and Manke have contributed to the team's 10 shutouts and combined 0.38 goals-against average.
TICKET AND MEDIA INFORMATION:
All quarterfinal games throughout the ODAC Championship are free of charge for anyone attending the games. Semifinal and championship game attendance will require paid admission through
Hometown Ticketing. Tickets may be purchased at the site of the game, but fans are encouraged to purchase their tickets ahead of time.
All games throughout ODAC Championship will be streamed on FloCollege and will have live stats provided. Live streaming on FloCollege requires a paid subscription, while games will be available for free on-demand on the FloCollege website following the conclusion of the games.
Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
