MILWAUKEE – The No. 3 seeded Northern Kentucky University women's soccer team is headed to its first Division I conference championship match on Saturday where it will take on the No. 1 seeded Milwaukee at the Panthers' Engelmann Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET and will be carried on ESPN3.

The winner of the match will receive an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for kids. All students of Horizon League member institutions are admitted free with a valid student ID.

Tournament information including the full bracket and schedule can be found at the Horizon League women's soccer Championship Central.

Horizon League Championship Finals
(3) Northern Kentucky Norse (12-6-1, 6-2-1)
at (1) Milwaukee Panthers (13-4-2, 8-1-0)
Saturday, Nov. 5 - 7 p.m. ET/6 p.m. CT
Milwaukee - Engelmann Stadium
Live Stats | ESPN3

POSTSEASON RECAP: The Norse defeated Wright State at home, 1-0, on a game-winning goal from Jessica Frey on Monday in the opening round on the Horizon League Championship. The shutout was NKU's eighth of the season. Sophomore goalkeeper Emily Lohmann posted her fifth solo shutout after scooping up five saves.

In the semifinals against Detroit Mercy, NKU erased a 2-0 deficit with a trio of goals across the final 30 minutes of play. Jessica Frey scored the first on an assist from Macy Hamblin in the 60th minute. A minute and a half later, freshman Shawna Zaken scored on an assist from Frey. Freshman Ally Perkins then netted the game winner in the 83th minute on another assist from Frey.

NORSE IN THE POSTSEASON: The Norse have been eligible to compete for a Division I conference championship for the last three seasons and have advanced to the semifinals or beyond in each of those seasons. This season marks the first time NKU is NCAA Division I Tournament eligible since being granted active Division I status on Aug. 9. The last time NKU won a conference tournament was in 2011 when the Norse earned their eighth Great Lakes Valley Conference title and advanced to their 11th NCAA DII Tournament.

Last season, NKU earned the No. 3 seed and hosted a HL Quarterfinal match where it defeated No. 6 seed Cleveland State, 1-0, to advance to the semifinals in Milwaukee. The Norse suffered a penalty kick loss to eventual champion Oakland in the semifinals after battling to a scoreless draw. In 2014 - NKU's first season eligible for a DI conference tournament - the Norse fell to eventual champion Florida Gulf Coast, 3-1, in the semifinals after defeating North Florida, 2-0.

TWO-TIME PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Junior forward Macy Hamblin was named the Horizon League Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year for the second-straight season. She leads the Horizon League in multiple offensive categories and has posted a new NKU Division-I program record for points in each of her three seasons. She is joined on the All-Horizon League First Team by fellow junior forward Jessica Frey, who has a team-high nine goals. Senior midfielder Katelyn Newton was named Second-Team All-Horizon League while Ally Perkins was selected to the All-Freshman team.

HEAD COACH BOB SHEEHAN: Twentieth-year head coach Bob Sheehan has led the squad to its second-straight season with double-digit wins, including a Division-I program-best 12 this season. He is the only head women's soccer coach in NKU program history and has led the program to a 296-93-26 overall record, including a 44-40-8 record in five years at the Division I level. He has also guided the Norse to a 12-4-2 all-time Horizon League record in its two seasons as a member.

NORSE NOTES:

• NKU has scored four goals across its two postseason matches thus far. Frey has played a part in each of those goals as the junior forward and First Team All-League selection has two goals and two assists in the last two games. Defensively, Lohmann has made nine saves and owns an .818 save percentage in the postseason
• Lohmann, a sophomore goalkeeper, owns a 10-5-1 record this season, as her 10 victories put her in NKU's record book at ninth place all-time in single-season wins. Her five shutouts are also tied for 10th all-time while her 62 saves are ranked eighth all-time behind senior Brooke Schocker's 64 saves posted last season.
• Frey scored her ninth goal of the season in the Horizon League semifinals to post the most single-season goals since the 2011 campaign when NKU played at the Division II level and Amanda Mason registered 15 goals.
• Additionally, Hamblin posted her ninth assist of the season in the semifinal match, which ties NKU's Division-I era record that the junior set last season.
• Four of NKU's six losses have been determined by one goal. The Norse have not lost a match by more than one goal since Aug. 25, the third game of the season, when NKU fell 2-0 at Eastern Kentucky.
• Including postseason matches, NKU has out-scored League opponents this season, 23-10. The Norse average 2.09 goals per League contest while their foes post just 0.91 goals per game.
• Thursday's win was the fifth time this season that NKU posted three or more goals. NKU has not allowed three or more goals since the season opener against Appalachian State on Aug. 19.

SERIES HISTORY: The all-time series between the Panthers and Norse is just two years old, as the first meeting came in 2015 when the squads played to a scoreless draw in Milwaukee on Oct. 24. The tie was Milwaukee's only non-victory in League play last season.

The teams met again on Sept. 24 this season with Milwaukee claiming a 1-0 victory over the Norse at NKU Soccer Stadium. Brooke Schocker stepped in goal following an injury to starting goalkeeper Emily Lohmann. Schocker registered five saves in her 65 minutes. Milwaukee's goal came in the 75th minute when the ball rippled just over the goal line directly off a corner kick from Maria Stephans.

SCOUTING MILWAUKEE: The Panthers have claimed the Horizon League regular-season title in 16 of the last 17 seasons as they are hosting the Championship for the ninth time in their program history. Milwaukee owns a 31-7-7 record in the League Tournament. The squad's only Horizon League loss this season was against Valparaiso when the Panthers fell, 2-1, in overtime on Sept. 28. Milwaukee has out-scored its opponents, 46-12, this season and average 2.42 goals per game while allowing 0.63.

UP NEXT: With a win, NKU would advance to its first Division I NCAA Tournament in the first year it is eligible to do so. The opponent will be determined during the NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament Selection Show, which is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 7 at 4:30 p.m. ET. The first round of the NCAA Tournament will take place Nov. 11-13 at campus sites.