COLUMBIA, S.C. – After earning the Sun Belt Conferences first at-large bid to the NCAA Division I Women’s Soccer Tournament, James Madison fell in the first round to No. 7 South Carolina on the road.
 
The Dukes (9-5-8) earned the first at-large bid for the league into the tournament after making it to the Sun Belt Tournament Championship for the second consecutive season. It marked the first appearance for James Madison since 2015 and was its twelfth overall appearance. With the bid, the Sun Belt became a multi-bid league for the first time in the league’s history.
 
South Carolina (12-2-6) used a pair of first half goals to win 2-0 and advance to the second round of the tournament where they will face the winner of No. 2 Stanford and Pepperdine.
 
JMU totaled seven shots in the match to the 19 from South Carolina. The Dukes totaled six shots in the second half and put a pair of shots on frame in the second 45 minutes. They nearly found the back of the net in the 88th minute as a shot from Shea Collins rang off the top of the goal.