PENSACOLA, Fla. - For the second time in program history, the Lenoir-Rhyne Women's Soccer has advanced to the Regional Final (Sweet 16) round of the NCAA Tournament. The first and only time the Bears advanced this far was in their first NCAA Tournament appearance in program history back in 2010.
 
This time around, the Bears take on the No. 18 Flagler Saints, the number four seed in the Southeast Region at the University of West Florida in Pensacola, Fla. Combined, these two teams upset the top three teams in the region to reach this game, with LR taking down No. 2 Catawba and No. 3 Queens, and Flagler beating No. 1 Columbus State. This is the second year in a row that LR defeated both Catawba and Queens in the postseason; the Bears took them both down last season during the SAC Conference Tournament.
 
LR and Flagler have only met once before, way back in 2009 in Hickory. The Bears won 5-2 over the Saints that day.
 
This game features nine players from the All-Region team, six from Flagler and three from Lenoir-Rhyne. Flagler features the Southeast Region Player of the Year in freshman Andrea Fernandez, who scored 17 goals and had 15 assists to finish third in program history with 49 points. She was also named Peach Belt Conference Player and Freshman of the Year.
 
The three Bears on the All-Region team are Ria Acton (First Team), Leonie Proessl (Second Team) and Vivien Becker-Peralta (Second Team). Acton and Becker-Peralta were also First-Team All SAC, and Proessl was Second Team.
 
In total, the Bears had three freshmen earn All-Conference honors, with Evan O'Leary joining Becker-Peralta and Proessl on the All-Conference teams.
 
Flagler has a top-5 scoring offense in the nation, scoring 3.35 goals per game. Senior goalkeeper Grayson Cameron leads the LR defense with a top-15 ranking in the nation in save percentage.
 
Flagler is an automatic qualifier for the tournament by virtue of its 5-3 win over Columbus State in the Peach Belt Tournament championship. The Saints then turned around and beat Columbus State again in the second round of the tournament, and combined to score nine goals in the two wins over the No. 1 seed in the Southeast Region.
 
The last time the Bears made it to the Regional Final round of the NCAA Tournament in 2010, they also played in Florida. LR defeated Armstrong St. 1-0 in Tampa before falling to Florida Tech in penalty kicks in the Elite Eight.
 
LR is 2-1-1 against ranked teams this season. Flagler comes in at No. 18 in this week's United Soccer Coaches rankings.
 
Kickoff is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. eastern time on Friday from the University of West Florida in Pensacola. The winner plays the winner of West Florida and Florida Tech on Sunday at UWF.