Trinity Baptist College women’s soccer completed its second season in existence in 2016, and head coach Prince Borde called it a banner year for his young but talented team that featured 10 freshmen, three sophomores, and two seniors.
The Lady Eagles finished with an official regular season record of 8-6-1, which included an impressive 7-4-1 mark against fellow National Christian College Athletic Association teams. The other three games were with NAIA teams and encompassed a 2-1 victory over Dalton State College (Dalton, Georgia). With this record, the Eagles found themselves in the Top 5 of the NCCAA Division 2 rankings each week throughout the season, peaking as high as No. 2.
In the postseason, the Eagles earned a first-round bye in the South Region tournament and won their semifinal game 3-2 over Toccoa Falls College (Toccoa, Georgia) on Oct. 27. That first postseason win in team history propelled the Eagles into their first-ever South Region final two days later. The Eagles lost 2-0 to the eventual national champion, Bob Jones University (Greenville, South Carolina).
Counting the playoff win and a rained-out 4-0 lead over Johnson University of Florida, the Eagles finished the season at 10-6-1, vastly improving on 2015’s mark of 4-12 in the team’s inaugural season.
Borde described the best and toughest moments of his second season. He said the best moment “has to be the final whistle against Toccoa Falls in the regional semifinals and seeing the young ladies celebrate.” In addition, Borde claimed seeing the girls bond personally and share their testimonies with each other throughout the season as two more fantastic memories.
The toughest moment, according to Borde, was the loss to Toccoa Falls in North Georgia (Oct. 7) then having to play Bob Jones the next day.
“We were physically and emotionally drained,” Borde said. “We outplayed Toccoa and lost the game 3-2. Toccoa is always a tough game for us as they are always well-organized and well-coached.”
Losing freshman forward Morgan Woods to an ACL injury midway through the season was also tough as Woods was among the team leaders in goals at the time of her injury. She did not return to the field.
Regarding strength of schedule, Southeastern University (Lakeland, Florida), the NAIA’s No. 21 team, was the toughest opponent the Eagles played. Southeastern won that game 5-0 on Sept. 16. The toughest opponent the Eagles beat was Dalton State, also of the NAIA. Dalton State defeated a number of NAIA Top 25 teams and finished as the Southern States Athletic Conference runner-up.
Granted, the Eagles have finished only their second season, but they saw a large number of team and personal records that future teams will have a hard time breaking. Among team records, the Eagles set the following:
- Most team goals in a season: 53
- Most team goals in a game: 12
- Most team assists in a season: 40
- Most team assists in a game: 11
- Most wins in a season: 10
- Most wins versus NCCAA teams: 7
- Highest NCCAA ranking: No. 2.
Individual records include these accomplishments:
- Most goals in a season: Alexandria Viera, 16
- Most assists in a season: Arisa Robles, 16
- Lowest goals-against average (goalkeeper): Tesia Keith, 1.71
- Most goals in a game: Alexandria Viera, 4
- Most assists in a game: Arisa Robles, 4.
In addition, the Lady Eagles also accomplished the following first-time feats:
- First win against an NAIA school
- First playoff win
- First South Region finals appearance
- First All-American players.
On that All-American list, freshman Kareema Mitchell made the NCCAA All-American first team, and sophomore Arisa Robles was named to the second team. Both also made the All-South Region first team.
Borde said that his team far exceeded his expectations.
“At the beginning of the season, our goal was to win 10 games, and we did that,” Borde said. “Our ultimate goal – like all teams – is to win a national championship. We lost in the playoffs to the eventual national champs 2-0, the identical score in which Bob Jones beat Grace Bible College (Wyoming, Michigan) to win the championship. Bob Jones also beat Randall University (Moore, Oklahoma) 3-0 in the national semifinals. So, yes, we did meet expectations. Now from the outside looking in, going from four wins to 10, we can easily say we exceeded expectations and made further progress in the postseason.”
The Eagles had five more players earn postseason honors by being named onto the All-South Region roster:
- Alexandria Viera (freshman): First team All-Region
- Tesia Keith (senior): Second team All-Region
- Kristin Pabon (freshman): Second team All-Region
- Domanique Baldwin (freshman): Second team All-Region
- Alexa Goodwin (sophomore): Second team All-Region.
The Eagles are a young but talented team of mainly freshmen and sophomores who look to continue their success. They will lose only two seniors, goalkeeper Tesia Keith and midfielder/goalkeeper Bekah Wilson. Borde, though, will not rest on this season’s success. He has a full slate of tasks to complete in the offseason – most importantly, getting his players stronger and fitter, seeing them bond even more as a team, and bringing in new players who will impact the team and help them all continue to grow both spiritually and athletically.
Borde identified the No. 1 goal for 2017.
“Get past Bob Jones and make it to Nationals,” Borde said. “That will be a tough task as they will have 11 seniors next season.”
He also added his final thoughts on the season as a whole.
“From a coach’s prospective, this was an outstanding season,” Borde said. “The ladies represented Trinity very well. That’s all you can ask for. They fought hard, trained hard, and bought into the coaching staff’s philosophy, and that’s very encouraging.”
Congratulations to the 2016 Trinity Baptist College Lady Eagles on a terrific season in their second year. Here’s to more success in the coming years as the program continues to build and the team works toward a potential NCCAA Division 2 national championship. As the Eagles proclaim, #WatchUsRise.
Trinity Baptist College Women’s Soccer: Building a Winning Tradition
Written by: Raymond Bureau