The Bruins dominate the Boyce College Bulldogs 5-1 in the NCCAA National Championship to get back on top for the third time in four seasons!
"The guys knew what they needed to do in order to get the job done, and they've been doing it all year," Head Coach Greg Fulton. "I could not be more proud and I consider myself lucky to be a part of it."
The Bruins couldn't have thought of a better start than what they had. They won an early free-kick near the box in the 4th minute. Tournament MVP Mario Figueroa put it on a line and connected with Matthias Baladi who headed it in to give the Bruins the early lead. When it came to the pace of play, the Bruins controlled. They were able to get off 12 shots in the first half. Senior Rylan Boldt used his speed to get through the Boyce back line and was able to tip one past the goalkeeper in the 16th minute to extend the lead. David Issa was credited with the assist. Perhaps the only blemish for the Bruins all match long was in the 31st minute when there was a little miscommunication in the Bruins back and Boyce capitalized to put their only goal away. The Bruins were unfazed answering back just a minute later in the 32nd minute when graduate student Eli Solomon scored with his right foot through the legs of the goalkeeper.
The Bruins continued their dominance in the second half and did not allow any shots for Boyce while having 15 of their own! They were able to score two of them very close together in the 54th and 57th minutes. Mario Figueroa, who already had an assist, found the back of the net to make it 4-1. Then Rylan Boldt found senior Anthony Ruiz on a through ball in which Ruiz finished. The Bruins held the 5-1 lead throughout the rest of the match.
Coach Fulton speaks to how special this team is: "We just tied the best record in program history, and we did it as a complete team. It wasn't just one or two guys, it was the entire 11 and beyond. No matter who stepped on the field, we were always stronger."
This was the final career match for 10 Bruins players. Miguel Giraldo, Rylan Boldt, Jake Provenzano, Matthias Baladi, Dallas Albert, Eli Solomon, Mario Figueroa, Anthony Ruiz, and Cameron Braswell are now able to leave Bob Jones University with a legacy of being national champions!
The Bruins adopted the Japanese term
kaizen to fuel their success this season. It's a philosophy that encourages continuous improvement. "Whenever we step on the field, it doesn't have to be perfect, just 1% better," said Coach Fulton. "When we step into the classroom, when we open God's Word, and whatever we do, we strive for 1% better."
The support for the Bruins has been big all season long. Many families, friends, and other Bruins fans came down to Kissimmee, Florida to cheer the Bruins to victory. Coach Fulton appreciates all the support saying, "It's something we look forward to anytime we can hear our fans cheering for us. We want to draw people in, not to see us, but to see who we represent each match and that's Jesus. I think the team did so well with that throughout the tournament keeping their cool and not letting the emotions get the best of them."
One final announcement of the season: the Bruins are the 2024 NCCAA National Champions!
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