Soccer bound for nationals
“This is the year, honestly,” junior All-PBC defender Morgan Cobb said. “We are such an amazing group of girls and we’ve come so far.”
The journey has been an interesting one, particularly in this, their greatest season ever. It began with a coaching change, often a huge disruption for any team. But the Bobcats took on the mentality of their new coach, Juan Pablo Favero, and followed his plan of attack to a one-loss regular season and a third seed in the Peach Belt tournament.
“At the beginning of the season, we had a long goal setting meeting. Winning the national tournament was the first thing that came to mind,” sophomore forward Jessica Newland said. “Our coach had complete faith in making the national tournament before our season even started.”
The last game of the regular season was at Columbus State University on Saturday, Nov. 4. The Cougars had not lost or even tied a PBC game since 2005, yet the Bobcats played their trademark swarming defense and came away with a 0-0 tie.
“We felt like we had finally started to break that glass ceiling they had above us. It made us realize that the next time we will have the advantage and we are going to take it,” Newland said.
The team then hosted their first-round playoff game for the second season in a row. On Tuesday, Nov. 4, the No. 3-seed Bobcats faced the No. 6-seed Lander Bearcats, a team they had beaten 1-0 earlier in the year. This time, GCSU left no doubt as they shut down Lander’s offense and scored once in each half for the 2-0 win. Junior defender Kara Teresi drove a free kick into the net in the early minutes for the eventual game-winner, and freshman midfielder/forward Megan McAlpin put the game away in the second frame.
Next up was a date with the Braves of the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, the only team to beat the Bobcats (1-0 in N.C.) in the regular season. GCSU went into the game sharp and focused against a team that Cobb called “talented,” Newland called “physical” and Favero referred to as “athletic.” All three agreed that the Bobcats are the better team, but a five-minute lapse cost them the game and a shot at the conference championship.
“We missed a penalty kick and it deflated us,” Favero said. “They took advantage.”
After the Pembroke game, the Bobcats’ postseason fate lay in the hands of the NCAA. Their resume was certainly impressive, boasting a 13-2-4 record and one of the best defenses statistically in the country, but the committee still had to vote them into the top six of the Southeast region.
It was announced on Tuesday night that the Bobcats would in fact be heading back to Columbus as the No. 4 seed to face No. 5 Catawba College on Friday, Nov. 14.
“We have done very well with the ‘one game at a time’ mentality, and that has never been more true than now,” Favero said. “In our region, anyone can win on any given night, and the DII tournament is the most competitive of all. You will see 8-0 scores in DI, but not here.”
Cobb showed her team’s determination to succeed at the next level.
“We haven’t lost on that field this season and we’re going to keep it that way,” she said.
“We are so stoked to get this amazing opportunity that no one at this school has been given before!” Newland said. “We are ready to train harder than ever to kick some butt and finally win that national championship that we deserve!”
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Nov 14 2008. Filed under Sports.
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