Abby Davis was again the hero for the Bruins on Saturday night as the senior scored four goals to help the Bruins defeat #3 seeded Toccoa Falls College 4-1 in the NCCAA DII South Region Championship in Mt. Airy, Georgia. This marks the fourth-straight region championship for the Lady Bruins.
"The team did a phenomenal job and collectively put on a fantastic performance," Bruins Head Coach Chris Carmichael said. "We did a much better job in staying connected, possessing and being patient. Toccoa Falls played a strong game despite the score and gave us a very good challenge."
The Bruins earned the #1 seed for the regional playoff and faced the Eagles after TFC defeated #2 Trinity Baptist College in penalty kicks on Thursday night. The Bruins and Eagles met earlier in the season with the Bruins winning 6-1. Because of wet conditions, the match was moved from Toccoa Falls College to a local high school nearby with a turf field.
From the opening kickoff, the Bruins came out well as they maintained possession and had a good rhythm of play on the fast turf. It didn't take the team long to get going as Megan Brubaker threaded a pass through the Eagles defense and Abby Davis scored on a breakaway to make it 1-0. The Bruins had seized momentum and continued to do well to attack the Eagles net.
Despite their chances, the Bruins only held a one-goal lead as the first half began to come to a close. With just minutes remaining in the opening half, Marissa Allebach found Davis on another breakaway and again Davis scored to make it 2-0 at the half.
In the second half, the Bruins didn't let up as they continued to circle the Eagles net with scoring opportunities. Just over 10 minutes into the half, Davis got her hat trick off an assist from Grace Hoffmann as the Bruins pushed their lead to 3-0. Davis would score her fourth goal just minutes later to put the game out of reach at 4-0.
With under ten minutes to play, the Eagles scored after the defensive miscue by the Bruins to make it 4-1. But it was too little, too late for the Eagles as the Bruins won yet another region championship with a 4-1 victory.
"We were able to execute our game plan and the players really stepped up tonight," Coach Carmichael said. "I am extremely proud of each of our players for their contributions to our team both on and off the pitch. I couldn't ask for a better team to coach."
The Bruins earned the #1 seed for the NCCAA DII National Tournament which will be played at Bob Jones University, November 16-17. The Bruins will face #4 seeded Randall University on November 16. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
