The Bruins were unable to overcome two first half goals as they fell to Warner University in the NCCAA DI South Region Finals in Lake Wales, Florida.
"It always hurts to fall short in a championship match," said Head Coach Chris Carmichael. I couldn't be more proud of our players and they had a phenomenal season as we continue to meander the challenges of playing NCCAA DI."
After defeating Carolina University 3-2 on Wednesday's semifinal match, the Bruins came into Friday's game looking to capture their first Division I South Region title. The Warner University Royals defeated Columbia International University to earn a spot in the finals. This was the first time the schools have met.
"We got behind early with a couple of sloppy goals inside our 18 and just couldn't get enough going on the attacking side to get back into the game. I thought we started the game very well and had control but a quick goal due to a messy situation in the box and then followed by a second goal a little while later due to another sloppy situation inside the 18 was just too much tonight for us to overcome."
Despite going down by two goals in the first half, the Bruins fought til the end and saw several good opportunities to get the ball in the back of the net. But a solid Warner University team kept them off of the board and they fell 2-0.
"I am extremely proud of how the team never gave up and they fought to the very end to get back into the game," said Carmichael. "We did create a few good scoring opportunities but just missed. I feel terrible for the players but they did everything right this season to get an opportunity to win a regional championship game and we just fell short to a strong Warner team today. To God be the glory for a great season so far and hats off to this phenomenal group of players."
At the conclusion of today's Region Championship matches, the the NCCAA committee chose the At-Large Selections for teams to compete in the Division I National Tournament. The Bruins women's soccer team earned a selection and enter the National Tournament as the #4 seed. The Bruins will compete in Pool Play beginning Tuesday, November 30. Tournament information can be found
here.
