WSU soccer: Cougars receive invite to NCAA tournament, to play at Portland

The Washington State Cougars soccer team has been selected for the 2012 NCAA tournament, and will start their run on the road against national powerhouse Portland on Nov. 9 at 7 p.m. PT.

Portland is listed as a four-seed, and only the top four seeds in each region are designated. The Pilots and Cougars shared six opponents in 2012: Oregon State, Oregon, USC, Gonzaga, Santa Clara, and San Diego.

The Pilots went 3-1-2 in the those matches, with wins over Oregon, San Diego, and USC and the loss coming at the hands of Oregon State. Portland's goal differential in those six games was plus-3. WSU finished 5-1 against those teams, with the loss coming to Santa Clara. The Cougs posted a goal differential of plus-7 in those contests.

WSU comes into the tournament having won five of seven, with two one-goal losses in the Bay Area to ranked Cal and Stanford teams. The Cougs beat the Huskies last Friday to close out their season and pad their resume. The win also extended soccer's unbeaten streak against UW to nine. Portland comes into the match on a six-game unbeaten streak.

For a link to the full bracket, be sure to check out the NCAA's official bracket page.