North Carolina defeated Notre Dame in the final, 2–1, to win their nineteenth national title. This was a rematch of the 1994, 1996, 1999, and 2006 tournament finals, all won by the Tar Heels.[2] The Tar Heels (25–1–2) were coached by Anson Dorrance.
The most outstanding offensive player was Casey Nogueira from North Carolina, and the most outstanding defensive player was Carrie Drew from Notre Dame. Nogueira and Drew, alongside nine other players, were named to the All-Tournament team.
All Division I women's soccer programs were eligible to qualify for the tournament. The tournament field remained fixed at 64 teams.[3]
Format
Just as before, the final two rounds, deemed the Women's College Cup, were played at a pre-determined neutral site. All other rounds were played on campus sites at the home field of the higher-seeded team. The only exceptions were the first two rounds, which were played at regional campus sites. The top sixteen teams hosted four team-regionals on their home fields (with some exceptions, noted below) during the tournament's first weekend.