CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The 2023 American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) Women’s Soccer Tournament is set to begin on Saturday, October 28 in Dubuque and Decorah, after an exciting regular season. Two teams enter the tournament ranked in the NCAA Region IX Rankings – Loras and Simpson. The six teams in this year’s conference tournament are battling for the conference’s automatic bid to the 2023 NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Tournament.
 
The first matchup in the opening round will be played in Dubuque, Iowa as the No. 5-seed Central College Dutch (9-4-4 overall, 4-3-1 A-R-C) travels to face the host, No. 4-seed University of Dubuque Spartans (10-5-1 overall, 4-3-1 A-R-C). These two squads met on September 30 in Pella with the match ending in a 1-1 draw. The Dutch finished the regular season on Tuesday night with a loss to Loras, 3-1, and the Spartans ended their regular season with a loss to Luther, 3-2. 
 
This matchup in the conference tournament first-round is set for 1:00 p.m. from Oyen Field on the campus of University of Dubuque. The winner will advance to play the No. 1-seed, Loras College, on Wednesday, November 1st at the Rock Bowl in Dubuque, Iowa.
 
In the second matchup of the opening round, the No. 6-seed Wartburg College Knights (6-10-1 overall, 4-4 A-R-C) will travel to Decorah, Iowa to face the No. 3-seed Luther College Norse (7-6-4 overall, 4-3-1 A-R-C). The two teams met on October 7th in Waverly, and Wartburg came away with a 2-1 win. 
 
The matchup up north in the first-round is set to take place at 1:00 p.m. from the Luther College Soccer Pitch. The winner will advance to play the No. 2-seed, Simpson College, on Wednesday, November 1st in Indianola, Iowa. 
 
The No. 23-nationally ranked Loras College Duhawks (15-1 overall, 8-0 A-R-C) have secured the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament for the seventh-straight season. Loras ended their regular season with a 3-1 win over Central to claim the outright title with an undefeated record in league play. Loras will host the winner of the No. 4-seed Dubuque / No. 5-seed Central match on Wednesday, November 1st from their home field, the Rock Bowl, in Dubuque, Iowa. 
 
The Storm of Simpson College (14-2-1 overall, 7-1 A-R-C) enter the conference tournament as the No. 2 seed and have earned a first-round bye. Under Jeremy Reinert, their only conference loss was to Loras. Simpson will face the winner of the No. 3-seed Luther / No. 6-seed Wartburg match in Indianola, Iowa on Wednesday, November 1st. 
 
The championship match, with the berth to the 2023 NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Tournament on the line, is set for Saturday, November 4th at the highest remaining seed.