The Bob Jones University women's soccer team have earned the title of region champions after a hard-fought win over Toccoa Falls College. In Jacksonville, Florida, the Bruins played to a 2-0 victory to capture the program's sixth NCCAA DII South Region Championship. With today's win, the Bruins have advanced to the national tournament and will make the trip to Kissimmee, Florida November 16-18.
"I'm so incredibly proud how hard this team works," said Head Coach Chris Carmichael. "Even when the technical and tactical parts of our game are not going our way, the team always grinds through it and has an extreme will to win and an "all-for- one, one-for-all" mentality. We have an incredibly gifted and strong South Region, and I couldn't be more proud of the other teams and the effort they also gave at regionals."
After a day off of games on Friday, the top-seeded Bruins entered today's championship match following a 7-0 victory over Campbellsville University Harrodsburg on Thursday night. Francesca Peters was on fire as she recorded four of the seven Bruins goals.
#2 Toccoa Falls College faced off against #3 Trinity Baptist College in the semifinals where two second half goals secured the Screaming Eagles a spot in Saturday's championship match.
As today's game got underway in Jacksonville, Florida, the Bruins began working for an early goal as they sent several shots towards the net of the Screaming Eagles, but Toccoa Falls came out strong looking to slow BJU's offense.
In the 25th minute, Gabriela Gonzalez worked her way around a TFC played and sailed the ball from the far side of the field towards the goal to Francesca Peters who turned in front of the net and shot the ball past the defender and goalkeeper to put the Bruins ahead 1-0.
After halftime, the Bruins continued to look for chances to increase their lead. Their time came in the 73rd minute as Sylvia Cummings raced around her defender and dribbled towards the net. She slid the ball across where Sarah Ward tapped it in to give the Bruins the 2-0 lead.
The Bruins held on to their lead and at the final whistle were crowned the 2023 NCCAA DII South Region Champions.
"Toccoa pressed us a lot which really threw us off and it took quite a while to find ways to break the press," continued Carmichael. "They have a lot of speed and some dangerous players and we knew we had to get better at halftime. After halftime we came out much better and were able to get our possession game going and this started opening up some more opportunities. Ches Peters continued to be red hot and scored her 5th goal of the tournament and at a crucial time when we needed a lift. Sarah Ward did a phenomenal job along with Shannon Miller as Sarah notched a very important second goal. We know that our job is not over and we are proud to represent the South Region and kudos to the other South Region coaches and their teams for an amazing job they did."
Following the match, Mia Marks said, "Toccoa Falls came out fast and strong today, but we weathered the storm, eventually settling into a great rhythm of possession. Francesca's goal gave us energy and momentum leading into the second half, and we were able to finish strong with another amazing finish from Sarah Ward to clinch the region championship!"
"This team is so much more than just a group of girls, it's a family and we all have each other's backs. We fought hard to get here and left everything on the field today and I couldn't be more proud or more thankful," said defender Abby Arrowood.
"To many watching, this may seem like one random season where we won. To many players, like myself, who have been here through years of ups and downs this Regional Championship was years in the making," said Gabriela Gonzalez. "It wasn't just deserved, it was earned. So proud of my team and their endless growth!"
The Bruins will take their talents to the national level as they prepare to compete at the NCCAA DII National Tournament November 16-18 in Kissimmee, Florida.
