2025 NCAA Division I Tournament: Semifinals & Final

NO. 2 PRINCETON vs NO. 3 HARVARD | 12 PM ET | STATS | WATCH

It's an Ivy League dominated NCAA Championship weekend, as the conference makes up half of the remaining four teams, and will face each other in the Semifinals on Friday at 12:00 p.m. ET. For the third time this season, Princeton and Harvard will battle.

Princeton (17-3) is Semifinal–bound after another clutch moment from Beth Yeager, who delivered her second straight postseason game-winner to lift the Tigers past Syracuse, 2-1, on Sunday. After assisting Pru Lindsey’s late third quarter tip-in, Yeager buried the decisive drag flick with 1:43 left, sending Princeton to Durham riding a 13-game win streak. Freshman Tabby Vaughan anchored a Tigers defense that held Syracuse to four shots, stepping in seamlessly for injured All-Ivy selection Ella Cashman. The win also avenged Princeton’s 1-0 overtime loss to the Orange in September.

Waiting is Ivy League rival Harvard, setting up an unprecedented third meeting this season and the highest-stakes chapter yet in the league’s most dominant rivalry. The teams split earlier matchups, with Harvard winning 3-1 in September, and Princeton taking the Ivy League tournament crown with a 2-1 win last week. The duo now collide with a spot in the National Championship on the line.

Harvard (19-1) returns to the NCAA Semifinals for just the second time in program history after overpowering New Hampshire 8-2 in the First Round and edging UConn 1-0 in the Quarterfinals. The Crimson, led by Ivy League Co-Offensive Player of the Year Sage Piekarski and first-year goalkeeper Linde Burger, boast one of the nation’s stingiest defenses: second nationally in goals-against average and tied for the fewest goals allowed. Harvard has rewritten its record book this fall with the program’s first perfect regular season (16-0), most wins ever, and its longest winning streak.

Princeton counters with one of the country’s top defenses of its own and the star power of Yeager, now up to 14 goals and 38 points. The Tigers seek their first title game appearance since 2012, while Harvard looks to reach its first-ever national final. The teams have shared the Ivy crown every year since 2004; now their rivalry steps onto the national stage Friday in Durham.

NO. 1 NORTH CAROLINA vs NO. 2 NORTHWESTERN | 2:30 PM ET | STATS | WATCH

A match-up that fans have waited all year to see... it's 2024 national champion Northwestern versus 2023 national champion North Carolina in the 2025 NCAA Semifinals.

This will be the first time that the Tar Heels and Wildcats are meeting in an NCAA Semifinal, and their lucky number 13th meeting overall. It is a rematch of the 2023 NCAA Final, when North Carolina took a 2-1 victory in overtime. The tension of this pairing gets even higher with the realization that these two programs have combined to win the last seven NCAA Championship titles.

North Carolina punched its ticket to a record 29th NCAA Semifinal behind Sanne Hak’s sudden-victory overtime winner, edging No. 8 Duke 2-1 in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels (21-1) dominated possession early, outshooting the Blue Devils 9-0 in the first quarter and 15-3 by halftime, but needed late resilience to survive their heated rivalry for the third time in 16 days. Kara Heck opened the scoring in the 24th minute, redirecting a setup from Ryleigh Heck and Charly Bruder, before Duke forced overtime with an early fourth-quarter equalizer. Hak struck just 1:10 into OT off UNC’s 15th penalty corner, finishing a perfectly delivered two-touch pass from captain Sietske Brüning. The Tar Heels’ backline, led by Grace Pottebaum, held Duke to just seven shots, sealing Erin Matson’s third straight Semifinal appearance as a head coach.

Awaiting them in Durham, N.C. is No. 2 Northwestern (20-1), which advanced to its fifth consecutive Semifinal following a gritty 3-2 win over No. 11 Miami (OH). Graduate forward Grace Schulze delivered the decisive goal with just 1:40 remaining—her sixth game-winner of the year—capitalizing at the back post on a late penalty corner. Laura Salamanca and Ella Kokinis also scored for the Wildcats, who outshot Miami 9-5 in the first half and held the nation’s highest-scoring offense to only three shots on goal, its fewest of the season. Northwestern’s defensive discipline and set-piece efficiency proved decisive as the Wildcats continued their postseason streak under head coach Tracey Fuchs.

North Carolina and Northwestern will meet in Friday’s national semifinal at 2:30 p.m. ET at Duke’s Jack Katz Stadium, marking a clash between the tournament’s top two seeds and two of the sport’s modern powerhouses. Fans can stream the action live on ESPNU.