It’s dancing time, folks.

After falling to No. 9 UCLA in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals, Penn State awaited the NCAA Tournament selection show on Monday, where it received the No. 4 seed in the bottom left sector of the bracket.

Penn State has not missed the NCAA Tournament since 30 years ago in 1995, the second-longest active streak in college soccer.

The Nittany Lions are set to host Stony Brook in the first round of the tournament. A win will see them face the winner of No. 5 TCU or Stephen F. Austin State.

Head coach Erica Dambach coached her team to 12-6-3 overall and 5-4-2 in the Big Ten. While boosting a top-four seed and an impressive record, Penn State will have a sour taste in its mouth when looking back at the regular season.

In the preseason, TopDrawerSoccer ranked the Nittany Lions as No. 5 in the country following its Elite Eight appearance in 2023. And in a poll of all 18 Big Ten coaches before the season, Penn State was picked to finish second in the conference. The Nittany Lions finished ranked No. 8 in the country by the committee and No. 10 in the Big Ten.

Despite finishing lower than expected and having the hardest-rated schedule in the NCAA, Penn State received a home game in the first round and never left the top 25, a season many would be ecstatic to have.

First Round: Stony Brook

The No. 4-seeded Nittany Lions will face Stony Brook in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament at 6 p.m. on Saturday, November 16, at Jeffrey Field. The 14-3-3 Seawolves travel to Happy Valley fresh off the Coastal Athletic Association Championship with a win over top-seeded Monmouth.

Stony Brook has progressed throughout the season with all three of its losses coming in September. Since October 1, the Seawolves are 7-0-2, including the postseason. Their only in-conference loss came at the hand of Elon.

“Anytime you have to play against a champion, you’ve got to go in with everything,” Dambach said following the selection show.

The Seawolves are led by a trio of experienced attacking threats. Junior Luciana Setteducate, junior Linn Beck, and graduate student Rielly Rich all finished the season with over 23 points. Beck was also named the Coastal Athletic Association Midfielder of the Year alongside Monmouth’s Liza Suydam.

Penn State last faced Stony Brook in 2019, also in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Nittany Lions prevailed 3-1. The only other time the two sides have played Penn State won 7-0.

The Nittany Lions are 23-3 in first-round matches in the tournament.

Second Round: TCU Or SFA

If the Nittany Lions win their first-round matchup against Stony Brook, they will face off against either No. 5 TCU or unranked SFA. Assuming top-seeded Florida State takes care of business against Samford, the second and third-round games will take place in Tallahassee.

TCU finished the season 16-3-2 and 9-0-2 in the Big 12. The Horned Frogs won the Big 12 regular season but fell to No. 6-seeded Kansas in the championship. With notable wins against Alabama and Colorado, TCU finished the season well ahead of Penn State in the United Coaches Poll at No. 7 but behind the Nittany Lions in RPI at No. 15.

SFA made the tournament through its fourth Southland Conference Tournament Championship in program history. The Lumberjacks went 14-3-2 in the regular season beating East Texas A&M University in the conference championship.

The two teams have met 10 times in the past, with TCU winning seven, SFA two, and one draw.

Looking Ahead

If all goes as planned, meaning no upsets, Penn State will face reigning national champion Florida State in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.

The Seminoles finished the season as the ACC champs with a record of 14-2-3. Despite this and the No. 3 rankings, the committee did not have them in the top 16 teams before this week. The Seminoles also made a similar jump in the United Soccer Coaches poll moving from No. 17 to No. 6 in the final week of the season.

Florida State’s best two wins came against UNC, who received a No. 2 seed in the same bracket as Penn State and the Seminoles. In the regular season, Florida State won 4-2, doubling down in the ACC championship with a 3-2 victory.

Taylor Huff has been one of the best players in the country this year for Florida State recording 33 points on 12 goals and nine assists.

Other teams in the mix for the round of 16 are No. 8 Vanderbilt, Samford, and Lipscomb. Vanderbilt won’t be an easy out for anyone this year. The Commodores come out of the SEC, which tied with the Big Ten with 10 of its teams competing in the NCAA Tournament. They finished the season 9-3-6.