Semifinal preview, players to watch

 

 

And then there were four.

Four teams  — No. 1 seeded Stanford, No. 2 seeds TCU and Duke and No. 3 seed Florida State — punched their tickets to the 2025 NCAA Women’s College Cup at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. The Final Four consists of three Atlantic Coast Conference teams, the fourth consecutive season multiple ACC teams have advanced to the Women’s College Cup.

While ACC powerhouses have been a staple, with at least one conference representative participating in the College Cup in every year of the tournament’s 44-season history, TCU is a newcomer. The Horned Frogs will make their first College Cup appearance on Friday, Dec. 4.

Here’s everything you need to know about the 2025 NCAA Women’s College Cup, including a breakdown of each semifinal matchup and players to watch:

2025 NCAA Women’s College Cup semifinal schedule

• No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 2 TCU | Fri. Dec 5, 6 p.m. ET (ESPNU)
• No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 2 Duke | Fri. Dec 5, 8:45 p.m. ET (ESPNU)

2025 NCAA Women’s College Cup bracket breakdown

No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 2 TCU

Florida State women’s soccer will make its 15th College Cup appearance, the second-most all-time behind North Carolina. The Seminoles are on the brink of a dynasty. A championship would be their fifth title overall and third in five years (2014, 2018, 2021, 2023). Florida State is riding an eight-game winning streak into the semifinals and have outscored their opponents 19-5 in the NCAA tournament.

Although TCU is set to make its Final Four debut, the Horned Frogs are far from underdogs. TCU has turned in its best postseason run in school history and doubled its previous program-high for wins in a single NCAA Tournament. The Horned Frogs have outscored opponents 14-2 in the tournament.

Florida State advanced to the semifinals by defeating Samford (4-0), Lipscomb (1-0), Georgetown (3-1) and Ohio State (4-1). TCU advanced with wins over Grambling State (7-0), Memphis (4-0), North Carolina (1-1, 4-3 in PKs) and Vanderbilt (2-1).

Players to watch

Florida State forward Jordynn Dudley (11 goals, 14 assists), who recorded her second postseason brace and third of the season against Ohio State; TCU F Seven Castain (17 goals, 4 assists), who is as clutch as they come with seven game-winners this season, second-best in the nation; Florida State F Wrianna Hudson (13 goals, 1 assist), who leads the Seminoles in scoring; TCU GK Olivia Geller (six shutouts, 58 saves), who had a career-high nine saves in TCU’s quarterfinal win over Vanderbilt.

No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 2 Duke

Duke advanced to the semifinals for the second consecutive year, becoming one of 12 teams to make back-to-back NCAA Women’s College Cup appearances. Head coach Kieran Hall is the third coach in NCAA history to take their team to the College Cup in their first season. The Blue Devils did so in dominant fashion by shutting out all four opponents during their NCAA tournament run.

That streak will be difficult to keep alive against Stanford, the highest-scoring offense in the nation. The Cardinal, the lone remaining No. 1 seed, has 95 total goals (24 more than the next closest team) and averages 4.13 goals per match. Stanford is riding an 16-game unbeaten streak into the semifinals and is outscoring opponents 21-5 in the tournament, a record for goals through four games. The Cardinal also lead the nation in shots on goal (23) and will surely keep Duke goalkeeper Caroline Dysart busy.

Duke advanced to the semifinals by defeating Elon (3-0), UCF (1-0), Kansas (2-0) and Washington (3-0). Stanford advanced by beating Cal Poly (3-1), Alabama (7-3), BYU (6-0) and Michigan State (5-1).

Players to watch

Stanford M Jasmine Aikey (20 goals, 11 assists), who has scored in three consecutive matches, while ranking fourth-best in the nation in goals and 14th in assists this season; Duke F Kat Rader (12 goals, 12 assists), who has scored or assisted in 17 of her 21 matches and moved to seventh all-time in Duke career goals (32) and points (84); Stanford F Andrea Kitahata (17 goals, 10 assists), who scored a brace in the Cardinal’s quarterfinal win against Michigan State in less than four minutes; Duke F Mia Minestrella (18 goals, six assists), who ranks first in the tournament with six goals and sixth nationally in total goals; Stanford M Charlotte Kohler (12 goals, 17 assists), who leads the nation in assists and scored in five of the last seven matches; Duke GK Caroline Dysart (11 shutouts, 53 saves), who has recorded four straight clean sheets in the tournament and has not allowed a single goal.

2025 NCAA Women’s College Cup championship schedule

The winners of the semifinals will face off for the championship on Monday, Dec. 8 at 7 p.m. ET at CPKC Stadium, the home of the NWSL’s KC Current, in Kansas City, Missouri.

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