FOLEY — The No. 2 seed Monarchs from Old Dominion defeated the No. 5 seed Dukes from James Madison 2-1 in overtime to capture their second consecutive Sun Belt Conference Women’s Soccer title at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex on Sunday, Nov. 5.

Freshman Sydney Somers provided the game-winning goal in the 108th minute from outside the 18 to give the Monarchs the 2-1 victory. All nine matches at the 2023 Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Tournament were decided by one or fewer goals.

Both Old Dominion and James Madison earned berths to the NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament after Monday's Selection Show. The two national qualifiers served as a conference record.

The Monarchs will be making their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and will play between Nov. 10-12, traveling to Washington, D.C., to take on the No. 3 seed Georgetown Hoyas. The Dukes will make their 12th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and will also play between Nov. 10-12, traveling to Columbia, South Carolina, to take on the No. 7 seed South Carolina Gamecocks.

The Sun Belt garnered respect from the start of the 2023 season, as the conference earned the nation’s best win percentage through the first two weeks of the season. As of Monday, the league boasted the fifth-best win percentage in the country and had six teams ranked in the top 71 of the Rating Percentage Index (RPI).