NCAA Division I college soccer kicks off on Thursday, and 2023 champs FSU are leading the preseason charge.

After this summer’s mass exodus from the Pac-12, three of the four remaining Power conferences — the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC — all added strong soccer programs to the mix. Each of those three conferences is now set to start the season with seven ranked teams, according to the United Soccer Coaches' Top-25 preseason poll.

Stanford's Kennedy Wesley and Florida State's Jordynn Dudley battle for the ball in the 2023 NCAA Championship match.
2023 College Cup runners-up Stanford are now ACC contenders with 2023 champs Florida State. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

ACC, Big Ten dominate college soccer rankings

Highlighted by No. 1 FSU and No. 2 Stanford, the newly restructured ACC is shaping up to be the conference to beat. With the country's top recruiting class plus 10 returning players, including sophomore striker Jordynn Dudley, FSU is back atop the preseason rankings for the fourth time in the last six seasons. 

Led by No. 4 Penn State, the Big Ten also boasts top contenders — especially after adding UCLA (No. 11) and USC (No. 23) to the fold.

With the addition of Texas at No. 17, the SEC has a solid foundation. However, with no schools ranked higher than No. 14 Georgia, they’ll need some standout non-conference wins to move up the weekly poll.

While the Big 12 has just two squads on the list, both cracked the Top 10, with 2023 College Cup semifinalist BYU coming in at No. 3 and Texas Tech tied for No. 8.

UNC soccer head coach Anson Dorrance stands on the 2022 NCAA championship match sideline.
UNC head coach Anson Dorrance retired on Sunday after 45 seasons with the Tar Heels. (Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Anson Dorrance departs UNC

NCAA soccer's biggest roster shift comes via the UNC coaching staff, with head coach Anson Dorrance announcing his departure from the program just four days before the season's start. After 45 seasons and 21 national titles — the most by a head coach in any DI sport — the Tar Heels manager passed the reins to associate head coach Damon Nahas, who will serve in an interim capacity as the school conducts a hiring search.

Dorrance is just the latest in a series of UNC turnovers, which saw nine 2023 players transfer and 11 turn pro — including top NWSL draft picks Ally Sentnor and Savy King.

How to watch college soccer this season

Four ranked matchups headline Thursday’s DI season opener, with No. 8 Texas Tech vs. No. 4 Penn State and No. 13 Michigan State vs. No. 15 Notre Dame leading the pack. Both games kick off at 7 PM ET with live coverage on BTN and ACCNX, respectively.

Deja Kelly has landed on her final destination, with the former North Carolina star announcing her commitment to Oregon on Monday. 

A three-time All-ACC guard, Kelly averaged 15.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game in her four years in Chapel Hill. She led the team in scoring in each of the last three seasons, but opted to transfer elsewhere for her fifth and final year of NCAA eligibility.

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The 5-foot-8 Texas native finishes her UNC career eighth on the team’s scoring list, having helped carry the Tar Heels to a Sweet 16 in 2022. 

Kelly is the seventh new addition for Oregon Ducks coach Kelly Graves this offseason, as the program faced a number of big name departures at the close of the 2023 NCAA tournament. She will join Texas' Amina Muhammad, Arizona's Salimatou Kourouma, Washington's Ari Long, BYU's Nani Falatea, UC Santa Barbara's Alexis Whitfield, and Siena's Elisa Mevius in Eugene this fall.

Kelly wasn't the only noteworthy transfer shaking up women's college hoops this week, with Marquette's Liza Karlen and Pitt's Liatu King both announcing their commitments to Notre Dame within a span of roughly 18 hours.

Paige Bueckers took the court for the second half of No. 17 UConn’s game with No. 24 North Carolina with 998 career points to her name. Fifteen seconds later, she reached 1,000. 

KK Arnold grabbed a steal in the Huskies’ defensive end. She barrelled down the court, and when she reached the key, she dished to Bueckers on her right side. Buckers crashed the net with the ball in hand and tapped a layup off the glass. 

After she tied Maya Moore to become one of the fastest UConn basketball players to reach 1,000 career points, Bueckers fell to the floor, rolled to her feet, and continued playing. 

A minute and a half later, Bueckers collected her own steal in the Huskies’ end and drove to the hoop again for another easy layup. And she celebrated her 1,002nd point instead of No. 1,000. 

As UNC called for a timeout, Bueckers puffed out her chest and screamed into the roar of the Connecticut crowd. Her teammates flocked to her and celebrated her achievement at her side. 

“Maya is one of the GOATs, so to be in that space is just amazing,” Bueckers said to ESPN after the game. “It’s just a testament to all that my teammates have done for me, all that my coaches have done for me, I’m just a product of what they do for me, so extremely grateful and it’s an honor to be next to her.”

Bueckers showed out at the Invesco QQQ Basketball Hall of Fame women’s showcase. She dropped 26 points against the Tar Heels and unleashed her defensive prowess as well, batting four blocks and making three steals. 

“I don’t know if it was the shooting sleeve or what but I felt like I was just trying to contribute to winning in any way that I can,” Bueckers said to ESPN. “I feel like if I play hard on the defensive end, stuff goes better for me on offense.”

No. 1 South Carolina eked out a 65-58 win over No. 24 North Carolina on Thursday, but freshman phenom MiLaysia Fulwiley played just three minutes.

It was an uncharacteristic game from Fulwiley, who had been playing significant minutes and hadn’t scored less than 10 points in her first five games. She entered Thursday’s contest as the Gamecocks’ second-leading scorer but rode the bench after the first quarter.

South Carolina trailed 19-10 after the first quarter. For head coach Dawn Staley, the decision to bench Fulwiley came because she wanted to go with the hotter defensive player.

“From a defensive standpoint, she lost her man a few times and gave up a couple of 3s,” Staley said.

Fulwiley entered the night averaging 15.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 23.5 minutes per game. She also has been sound defensively, with 10 steals and 7 blocks on the year.

But there’s still room for improvement, Staley said. And while the game showcased an area in which Fulwiley can improve, Staley also was looking out for her player.

“I know that’s probably one of the things she has to improve on, but it was such a nip-and-tuck game that I don’t want her to lose confidence,” Staley said. “She’ll know exactly why she didn’t get extended minutes. I’ve always told our players if you play well, you get extended minutes. If you don’t, they have to go to someone else. It could be you at times, it could not be you at times.”

After all, though South Carolina is ranked No. 1 in the country, the Gamecocks are still a young team and there will be growing pains. But they did rally in the second half to take the lead and the win from UNC. Their next game comes on the road at 1 p.m. ET Sunday against Duke.

“We just have such a young team that they got to know, and hopefully she doesn’t feel good about not playing as much as she probably wanted to,” Staley said. “Hopefully we can get her in at Duke and hopefully play some extended minutes, but she’s got to be ready to rock and roll.”

Erin Matson has led the No. 1 UNC field hockey team to its 11th NCAA championship in program history.

She is 23 years old. And she’s the youngest head coach in Division I sports — and the youngest to win a national title.

Just last year, Matson was on the field with many of the players she’s coaching, winning the same championship. Matson also won four ACC championships as a player with the Tar Heels, and she’s already won one as a coach after defeating Duke in the ACC tournament final on Nov. 3.

Maybe her age is an advantage. Matson has been encouraging her teammates since she was on the pitch herself, and she has been able to carry that into her first season as head coach.

“We have that foundation of a relationship,” Matson told Sports Illustrated in August. “So, then it’s, ‘O.K., I’m not taking time to check in on how you’re doing because I don’t know. I’m taking time to check in on how you’re doing because I know who you are as a person, and I can read the situation and I’m here for you.’ It’s a different relationship.

“I know they have my back, and they know I have theirs. I think their attitude every day⁠—how much they want to succeed themselves but also do it together⁠—is really empowering.”

Another key to Matson’s success as a coach is her history as a player. Not only is she a four-time ACC champ, Matson also has been awarded player of the year honors three times and she is UNC’s all-time leading scorer. She also is one of the only coaches in the D-I sports who has navigated NIL regulations as a player, giving her precious insight into the minds of those she coaches off the field and on it.

In Sunday’s NCAA tournament final, the No. 1 Tar Heels beat the No. 2 Northwestern Wildcats by a score of 3-2 on penalty strokes to secure Matson’s first national title as a coach. And judging by her career so far, it probably won’t be her last.

The 2020-21 DI Field Hockey Championship title match is set after Friday’s semifinal competition, with both North Carolina and Michigan advancing.

No.1 North Carolina put on a commanding semifinal performance, overpowering No. 4 Iowa 3-0. The Tar Heels’ shutout sent the team to its third straight national championship.

No. 2 Michigan pushed past No. 3 Louisville in a nail-biter of a semifinal. The Wolverines struck first with a well-executed set piece. Then, in the final minutes of the match, Louisville equalized with a corner of their own, sending the game to overtime.

In the end, Michigan eked out the win, beating Louisville 4-3 in penalties.

Michigan and North Carolina will play for the national championship on Sunday, May 9 at 7 p.m. ET.