CLEVELAND, Ga. (Apr. 7, 2021) – The Truett McConnell University women's soccer team competed in the Appalachian Athletic Conference tournament championship Wednesday night, inside the TMU Soccer/Lacrosse Complex, where they matched up with No. 2-seeded Reinhardt University. TMU secured the title of Regular Season Champions and their ticket to the NAIA National Tournament with a record of 10-0-1 but fell just short of a double title as they suffered a 3-1 loss to the Eagles. This is the Eagles first tournament title since 2016.

Reinhardt rose to a season record of 15-1, 12-1 AAC, with the one loss on the year to TMU. The Lady Bears are now sitting at a record of 13-4-2, 12-0-1, as they head into the NAIA Opening Round. 

PLAY-BY-PLAY
The entire first half saw both teams show their grit, with goalies resilient making impressive saves. In the 37th minute of the game, the Eagles earned a corner kick that resulted in an unfortunate own goal kick by TMU, putting the visiting team up 0-1. The Lady Bears bounced back, capable of taking a shot on goal, but as the final four seconds struck, Reinhardt gained speed to find the back of the net, making the score 0-2 at halftime. 

TMU did not back down, gaining ground at the start of the second by earning four corner kicks and two shots on goal. After making their way down the field to the visiting team's goal, a crossed ball from AK Navas found the foot of Sydney League to put the Lady Bears on the board and one point away from bridging the gap (1-2). Reinhardt responded by pressing hard, forcing TMU to work on defense, which resulted in their third goal of the night at the 75-minute mark (1-3). The Lady Bears were capable of taking three more shots on goal, but it proved not enough as they fell to a score of 1-3.

COACH'S COMMENT
"Tonight, wasn't our night," Head Coach David McDowell said. "We showed heart, fight and passion but made a couple of mistakes that cost us. This is a great group of girls that always play with their hearts and that's all I can ask of them. They left it all on the field but sometimes it doesn't go our way. I know they will respond going into nationals next week. We've had a long season and we want to finish stronger so we'll recover and go again next week."

LEADERS
League led the way with five shots, four on goal, along with a single goal, while Navas had a single shot on goal and one assist. Lauren Bergevine had two shots, one on goal, followed by Ashleigh Smitherman and Brianna Hernandez who had one shot apiece. Goalie Addy Galason recorded three saves on the night, totaling 52 this season.

TMU will find out who they will be facing in the opening round of the NAIA National Championships, which will take place on Thursday, April 15, on Monday, April 12.