KISSIMMEE, Fla. —The Bethel Pilots (11-7-2) defeated the University of Northwestern Eagles (12-7-3) 5-0 on Tuesday afternoon at the Austin-Tindall Sports Complex.
The win marks the highest Bethel score at an NCCAA National Championship matchup. The Pilots last won the NCCAA National Title in 2023, with Jason Freeman receiving Coach of the Year Honors.
In the 17th minute of the first, Aubrey Vervynckt scored her sixth goal of the season, assisted by Leila Mojtahedi. The same duo would also score the last goal for Bethel in the 55th minute of hte matchup.
Jesse Campbell of the NCCAA shared, “Less than a minute later, Grace Beck was able to poke one off the cross bar and down for the Pilots second goal of the game to quickly take command at 2-0.”
The 2-0 lead marked Beck’s second goal on the season, with her first goal recorded against the Cornerstone University Golden Eagles on Sept. 10.
Campbell continued, “Leena Thomas would find the net twice in the 46th and 48th minute to immediately balloon the lead to 4-0.”
The Pilots more than doubled the amount of shots taken by the NCAA Division III Eagles (8), showcasing ten of their 19 shots on frame.
Meghan Kiebel led the team in saves (three), and Lauren Gatewood recorded two.
Freshman Marleny Ramirez entered the action for her first appearance since the Goshen game on Oct. 4, recording nine minutes of play.
Head Coach Jason Freeman wrote, “Today was a great picture of the standard for our program on the field. In what was arguably our best performance of the season, it was really fun to watch the team move the ball around today. More than the technical quality from the players, I appreciated the joy and perspective the team played with today.”
Bethel will next compete on Thursday, Dec. 4 against the Asbury University Eagles (11-8-4) at 12 PM.
In the Eagles’ most recent matchup, they posted a 2-2 draw with the Warner University Royals, whom the Pilots defeated 2-1 on Monday.