Box Score
The Bruins welcomed the Bluefield College Rams on Tuesday night to Alumni Stadium. The team was playing their last home match of the season and were set to honor their seniors in their last time playing in front of the Bruin faithful. The team has had a bit of a break in their season with their last match 10 days ago in a 4-1 loss to Truett-McConnell. The Bluefield Rams were coming off a 2-0 win over St. Catharine College, but the team has struggled as of late with a 1-3-1 record in their last five matches. For their final match, Bruins' coach Chris Carmichael started his 10 seniors in their final home game. 

From the opening kickoff, the Rams controlled possession and were able to set the tempo early. The team chemistry was lacking for the Bruins as the team adjusted to new players in the lineup. As the game continued, the Bruins had several opportunities to score as Spencer Martin and Lauren Peek each had golden opportunities in front of the net to score. In the 16th minute, Victoria Doyle fired a shot past Tori Anderson to put the Rams up 1-0 on the Bruins. The Bruins had a great chance later on in the first half as Spencer Martin had a one-on-one break but her shot sailed just wide as the Bruins went into the half trailing 1-0.

"We didn't keep with the pace tonight," Coach Carmichael said. "They brought on a pretty fast pressuring system and we didn't match it. It forced us into a frantic mess at times and we need to learn how to deal with that."

In the second half, the Bruins adjusted well to the pressure and began to work the ball towards the Rams net. Despite their advances, the Rams defense stood strong and kept the Bruins at bay. In the 60th minute Jessica Newman fired a shot off of the Bruins defender which changed the trajectory of the shot and found its way past Tori Anderson to put the Bruins down 2-0. From there, the Rams continued to keep up the defensive pressure and brought more of their players back to fortify their defense. Despite the pressure, the Bruins still generated great looks on net, but the Rams outshot the Bruins 15 to 9 on the night. 

With less than 10 minutes to play, Coach Carmichael subbed in his seniors to give them one last stand at Alumni Stadium. As the horn rang, the Rams had completed the clean sheet and handed the Bruins their second straight loss. "We had some opportunities to combine in the box and we just didn't find the net," Coach Carmichael. "We just have to possess and get better balance and better movement off the ball."

With the loss, the Bruins fall to 7-4-2 on the season. The Bruins will graduate 10 seniors at the end of the season and Coach Carmichael knows that with them will go a lot both on and off the field. "They've been a huge part of our success both last year and this year," Coach Carmichael said. "They give us the leader and the calmness on the field. They did a great job."

The next match for the Bruins women will come on Saturday as the team will travel to North Carolina for a match with Chowan University.