SAN ANTONIO – The No. 6/9 Tiger women's soccer team resumes its NCAA Playoff run this weekend in Virginia, joining three other ranked teams at the NCAA Sectionals hosted by No. 3 Christopher Newport University.

The Sectionals begin on Saturday, November 19, as hosting Christopher Newport faces Trinity in a rematch of last year's NCAA Playoffs. The Captains defeated the Tigers 1-0 on their way to the NCAA III Championship in 2021. Trinity has lost the last three meetings against Christopher Newport, including regular season matchups in 2019 (L, 0-2) and 2017 (L, 0-1).

NCAA III Rankings: D3soccer.com and United Soccer Coaches

Both NCAA III polls have stopped releasing new rankings. Trinity remains sixth in the D3soccer.com poll and ninth in the United Soccer Coaches rankings. Christopher Newport is ranked third in both polls. The other teams at this weekend's Newport News Sectional are Virginia Wesleyan University and the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. Virginia Wesleyan is 16th in the United Soccer Coaches poll and receiving votes in D3soccer.com. UW-La Crosse is 12th in according to the coaches poll and 13th in the other.

Preview: NCAA Sectionals at Newport News, Va.

With three of the fourth teams at this NCAA Sectional ranking in the top 12 in goals against average in all of NCAA III this season, the three games in Virginia this weekend should be defensive struggles. Trinity is the top-ranked team this year in GAA, while Christopher Newport is not far behind at No. 7 in the country. Virginia Wesleyan is also 12th, while UW-La Crosse is No. 33.

The first game of the weekend between the Tigers and Captains will feature two of the highest-ranked goalkeepers in the country. Lauryn Lewis (Carrollton, Texas / Creekview) of Trinity ranks fourth in all of NCAA III in goals against average, while Christopher Newport's Jaya Daniel is 17th in the category. Both are also tied for 32nd in NCAA III with eight shutouts each.

Trinity also brings a scoring punch as the highest-ranked offensive team in the Sectional. The Tigers are first in the country in total assists and second in assists per game. Trinity is also third nationally in total goals and total points. The majority of the scoring comes from sophomore Michaela Bosco (Weatherford, Texas / Weatherford) and senior Molly Sheridan (St. Louis, Mo. / Kirkwood). Bosco is 15th in the country with a team-leading 20 goals on the year, while

Sheridan is ranked 19th in both goals (19) and points (46). Bosco is also tied for the national lead with nine game-winning goals. Kyra Stafford (Albuquerque, N.M. / Hope Christian) leads Trinity with 11 assists and is ranked 11th in NCAA III in that category. Two-time Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year Bailey Meyer (Southlake, Texas / Carroll) has been key to Trinity's 20 team shutouts this season that equates to a shutout percentage of .870 to lead the country. SCAC Newcomer of the Year first-year Hannah Khan (Southlake, Texas / Carroll) has also been a major factor in the offense with 15 goals and 34 total points.

What's at Stake

The winner of the two NCAA Third Round games on Saturday advances to the NCAA Quarterfinals on Sunday. The team that advances on Sunday moves on to the NCAA Championships and will return to Virginia on December 2-4. The NCAA Semifinals and Final will be held at Kerr Stadium in Salem, Virginia.