1986 NCAA Division I field hockey tournament
# 1986 NCAA Division I field hockey tournament

The 1986 NCAA Division I field hockey tournament was the sixth annual single-elimination tournament hosted by the National Collegiate Athletic Association to determine the national champion of women's collegiate field hockey among its Division I members in the United States, the culmination of the 1986 NCAA Division I field hockey season.

Iowa won their first championship, defeating New Hampshire in the final.

The championship rounds were held at Foreman Field in Norfolk, Virginia for the second straight year.

## Qualifying

| Team | Record | Appearance | Previous |
| - | - | - | - |
| Connecticut | 12–3–3 | 6th | 1985 |
| Iowa | 16–2–1 | 5th | 1985 |
| Massachusetts | 16–3–1 | 6th | 1985 |
| New Hampshire | 15–2 | 4th | 1985 |
| North Carolina | 17–2 | 4th | 1985 |
| Northwestern | 14–3–2 | 5th | 1985 |
| Old Dominion | 18–1–2 | 6th | 1985 |
| Penn | 12–3 | 2nd | 1983 |
| Penn State | 16–3–2 | 5th | 1985 |
| Rutgers | 13–5–2 | 2nd | 1984 |
| Stanford | 11–4–1 | 2nd | 1985 |
| West Chester | 16–4 | 1st | Never |

## Bracket

| First round November 15 Campus sites | First round November 15 Campus sites | Second round November 16 Campus sites | Second round November 16 Campus sites | Semifinals November 22 Norfolk, VA | Semifinals November 22 Norfolk, VA | | Championship November 23 Norfolk, VA | Championship November 23 Norfolk, VA |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Rutgers | 3‡ | | | | | | | |
| Penn | 2 | | | | | | | |
| Penn | 2 | North Carolina | 2 | | | | | |
| Piscataway, NJ regional | Piscataway, NJ regional | North Carolina | 2 | | | | | |
| Piscataway, NJ regional | Piscataway, NJ regional | Rutgers | 0 | | | | | |
| | | | | North Carolina | 1 | | | |
| | | | | New Hampshire | 2 | | | |
| Connecticut | 3 | | | | | New Hampshire | 2 | | | |
| Massachusetts | 2 | | | | | | | |
| Massachusetts | 2 | New Hampshire | 2 | | | | | |
| Storrs, CT regional | Storrs, CT regional | New Hampshire | 2 | | | | | |
| Storrs, CT regional | Storrs, CT regional | Connecticut | 1 | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | New Hampshire | 1 |
| | | | | | | | Iowa | 2** |
| Northwestern | 3 | | | | | | | | Iowa | 2** |
| Stanford | 0 | | | | |
| Stanford | 0 | Iowa | 2 | | |
| Iowa City, IA regional | Iowa City, IA regional | Iowa | 2 | | |
| Iowa City, IA regional | Iowa City, IA regional | Northwestern | 1 | | |
| | | | | Iowa | 2 |
| | | | | Penn State | 0 |
| Penn State | 2‡ | | | Penn State | 0 | | Third place | Third place |
| West Chester | 1 | | | | |
| West Chester | 1 | Old Dominion | 0 | | | | North Carolina | 4 |
| State College, PA regional | State College, PA regional | Old Dominion | 0 | | | | North Carolina | 4 |
| State College, PA regional | State College, PA regional | Penn State | 1 | | | | Penn State | 0 |

* * indicates overtime period
* ‡ indicates penalty shoot-out
