The Emory University women’s soccer season came to a close in the NCAA Division III championship game against the Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) Bears on Saturday afternoon. The Eagles fell 2-1 after a historic season that saw them set the Emory record for most wins in a season in program history and reach the championship game for only the second time in program history.
In the Final Four game on Dec. 4, the Eagles shut out Tufts University (Mass.) and clinched a ticket to the championship game. Emory scored a total of three goals against Tufts, with sophomore forward Mikayla Camp scoring two and junior midfielder and defender Madison Teng scoring one.
Going into the game, junior midfielder and defender Stella Gall said the team chose to focus on staying consistent because their strategy had proven successful in past games.
“One of the big mantras that our coach has been repeating over and over is that we are exactly where we’re meant to be, and reiterating that we have done all the training and that we have fine-tuned so many things,” Gall said.
Within the first four minutes of the game, the Eagles had their first lead. Freshman midfielder Sophia Asiain passed the ball into the box, where sophomore forward Emory Bozzuti headed it down and Camp picked it up for the team’s first goal.
“I checked the ball, and I was literally by myself,” Asiain said. “Then I saw [Bozzuti] towards the back post, and she wasn’t able to get the header in, but when it rebounded to [Camp] and [Camp] placed it so well, it was a really exciting moment for everyone.”
The first goal was a set piece, which Asiain said head coach Sue Patberg had prioritized in practices leading up to the game.
“We practiced that set piece over and over again,” Asiain said. “She emphasized how important set pieces are to us multiple times, so that definitely played a big role.”
Roughly 15 minutes after halftime, the Eagles came back out and scored again in the 59th minute. Teng turned a turnover into a goal with a shot to the top right corner.
“I haven’t scored a goal like that all season, so I’m glad to save it for today,” Teng said in the postgame press conference. “In the moment that I did score, we were losing momentum and that was a big shift for us.”
Up 2-0, the Eagles did not turn down their offensive power. In the 73rd minute, junior forward Kaitlyn Nimmer passed the ball to the center of the field, where Camp took possession and scored a third goal from 25 yards out. The team emerged victorious 3-0 and punched their ticket to the championship game.
The Eagles entered the matchup against WashU on Saturday with confidence from their previous win.
The team saw success early in the game. Teng scored the first goal in the 22nd minute off of an assist from Nimmer. Senior goalkeeper Sophia Garcia matched the offensive energy, making two saves in the first half. The Eagles managed to hold their 1-0 lead for the remainder of the first half.
At the start of the second half, the Bears took control of the game, holding the majority of the offensive possession. WashU had seven shot attempts within the first ten minutes of the half. Garcia held up Emory’s defense, saving all three shots on goal. Nimmer attempted to kickstart offensive momentum with a shot on goal in the 66th minute, but it was unsuccessful.
The Bears continued to challenge the Eagles with increased offensive pressure. In the 68th minute, the Bears scored their first goal to tie the game before scoring their second goal just two minutes later to take a 2-1 lead.
The Eagles came close to tying the game off a set piece but were unable to get the shot off. Despite the brutal ending to their season, Patberg said in the postgame press conference that she was proud of her team’s effort all season long and their ability to get back to this stage.
“Every player gave their all on both teams, and we’re super proud of our Emory Eagles and the entire season that they’ve had,” Patberg said. “They almost achieved their full goal, but to get back here back-to-back was a huge motivator for us all season long and we’re incredibly proud of their effort.”
