UB Women's Soccer Alum Nic Worthington in FA Cup Action vs. Manchester United This Sunday, April 18

What to know:

University of Bridgeport Women's Soccer Alum Nic Worthington, class of 2017, will feature for Burnley F.C. Women in the 4th Round of the 2020-2021 Women's FA (Football Association) Cup, as the club will host Manchester United Women's FC on Sunday, April 18. The match kicks off at 9am ET and will stream on Clarets+, the Burnley FC digital media player.

Why is the Women's FA Cup important:

The Women's FA Cup, or known as the Vitality Women's FA Cup for sponsorship purposes, is one of the oldest and largest cup competitions in women's soccer around the World. It is a competition that dates back to 1970 and is open to professional and semi-professional women's soccer teams in England.

How does the competition work:

The Women's FA Cup is open to any club in the top seven tiers of the England Women's soccer pyramid, ranging from full time professional clubs to local semi-professional teams. 376 teams entered the 2020-2021 competition, with the lowest ranked clubs entering in the Extra Preliminary Round. Five total rounds of preliminary and qualifying rounds are needed to whittle the field down to 71 eligible teams before the competition begins. There are seven rounds in the tournament proper before the final two remaining teams meet in the Final, to be held at Wembley Stadium in London. The current Women's FA Cup Champions are Manchester City Women.

Usually, the competition begins in early September with the Final being contested in May. But due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the competition was paused in early December after the First Round. The tournament got back under way at the beginning of April but the Final will not be contested until later in the calendar year, with the club season scheduled to end in early May.

Who is Burnley F.C. Women:

Burnley F.C. Women are based in the city of Burnley in North East Lancashire and are the only Women's team in the city. Currently the club competes in the third tier of English Women's soccer in a league called the FA Women's National League (FAWNL) North, which is just two steps below the FA Women's Super League, the top domestic league in the country. The clubs' league campaign was curtailed in late 2020 due to COVID concerns in England and the league results were declared Null and Void, despite the team sitting in eighth place in the league.

How did Burnley reach this stage:

Burnley entered the competition in the Second Round proper, as clubs in the third tier of English Women's Soccer got a bye in the First Round. Burnley defeated Fylde Ladies F.C. 1-0 in the Second Round, with Nic Worthington scoring a penalty in the final few minutes of Added Extra Time. In the Third Round, Burnley played Sunderland to a scoreless draw in 120 minutes before advancing over Sunderland 3-1 on penalties.

What are Burnley up against:

Burnley will host Manchester United Women, who currently sit in fourth place in the FA Women's Super League (WSL). One of the global giants in professional soccer, Manchester United created a professional Women's Team in 2018 and only needed one season in the FA Women's Championship, the second division of English Women's Soccer, before gaining promotion to the WSL. The team is managed by England legend Casey Stoney and have a litany of internationals on their roster, including United States Women's National Team players Tobin Heath and Christen Press.

What's on the line:

A win for either team will progress the club to the Fifth Round and will host the winner of the match between Leicester City, who recently have just clinched the FA Women's Championship title, or Liverpool on May 16th.

What has Nic Worthington been up to since graduating from Bridgeport:

The 2016 Division II First Team All-American honoree has had a successful career playing in England Women's Soccer since graduating in 2017. She featured for Durham Women's FC in the FA Women's Championship in the 2017-2018 season before moving to Bolton Wanderers Ladies the following season. Then she joined Burnley in 2019 and has been playing there ever since. She has been a consistent player in the squad since joining and scored the winning goal for the club in the Second Round to help them advance past Fylde.

How to Watch:

Burnley will stream the match on their digital media platform, Clarets+, starting live at 9am Eastern Time. A one-month subscription costs £1 ($1.38) and according to the Clarets+ website, all viewers will be entered into a drawing for a signed shirt and match ball by the team. To register for Clarets+, click here: https://login.burnleyfootballclub.com/Auth/Register

After registering, click on the Clarets+ logo in the top left of the screen to purchase a monthly subscription.