Box Score
The Bruins women were on the road on Saturday afternoon as they traveled to Georgia for a match with the Truett-McConnell Bears. The Bruins have been unbeaten in their last 8 matches having won seven and having one draw (7-0-1). During this time, the Bruins had outscored their opponents 26-1 as the team was firing on all cylinders. The team was coming off a 5-0 thrashing of Johnson University on Thursday night. The Truett-McConnell Bears have had great success so far this season with the team going 8-5 thus far including being 6-0 at home. The Bears were entering the match against BJU with a four-game winning streak. The Bears play in the NAIA with their most recent victory edging Point University 2-1. One streak was about to be broken as the battle of the Bruins and Bears began in Cleveland, Georgia.
As the game began, the Bruins set out to establish momentum and the tempo of the game. The team played hard and was able to have good ball movement and combination play throughout the first half. The Bears countered with good play of their own as they worked through the Bruins defense to generate open looks. The Bears got on the board first as Tori Anderson couldn't make the save to put the Bears up 1-0. Near the midway point of the first half, Lauren Peek received a great through pass from Spencer Martin to go one on one and beat the goalkeeper with a low hard shot into the net to tie the game at 1-1. The Bears would respond by notching another goal just before the half to make the score 2-1 at the break.
"Despite the score I was really pleased with our possession rate and attacking patterns offensively," Coach Carmichael said. "We had a number of great opportunities to find the net and we didn't finish."
In the second half, the Bruins switched up their offensive attack to try to get the equalizer. The team had several great opportunities to get back into the game, but each time their shots would sail just wide as the Bears maintained the lead. Despite playing from behind, the Bruins had great form and executed great attacking patterns as they looked to draw even. Their drive to score left them exposed in some situations on the defensive end and the Bears capitalized by scoring two second half goals to increase their lead to 4-1. "Truett is a very strong team with exceptional speed," Coach Carmichael said. "They finish very well. It's obvious why they are undefeated at home." The Bruins made several great shots on frame, but were unable to score in the final minutes of the half. As the buzzer sounded, the Bruins 8 game unbeaten streak was broken with a 4-1 loss.
"The score did not reflect the quality of our play tonight," Coach Carmichael said. "I was happy to see our girls work incredibly hard to the very end and this work effort will pay good dividends in the matches to come."
With the loss, the Bruins women are 7-3-2 on the season. The team will benefit from some much needed rest as they prepare for their next game coming up on October 15, against Bluefield College. This will be senior night for the Bruins women and will be the last home game for the team this 2013 season. The Bruins continue to improve and are building a serious case as one of the premier teams in the NCCAA DII.
