In their first game in almost a week, the BJU women’s soccer team defeated the visiting Florida College Falcons 1-0 in a thrilling overtime victory Thursday, Oct. 16.

The Bruins relied on a beautiful free kick from Jennifer Wise in overtime to improve to a 10-3-2 record. It was a fantastic finish for a team looking to build momentum heading into the final week of the season.

Despite chilly fall weather, many fans stayed after the earlier men’s soccer game to support the women’s team. Head Coach Chris Carmichael noted that the cooler weather did not affect the team.

Throughout the game, BJU gave away several unforced turnovers. “We didn’t quite get [the possession play] tonight,” Carmichael said. “There were little glimpses, but just not consistent. We ended up defending way too much.” The Bruins are at their best when they possess the ball in the midfield and work the ball up the sidelines. Unfortunately, the ball was forced into the middle too early and created unnecessary turnovers. But Carmichael is confident the team can remedy those problems before the postseason begins.

Throughout the first half, both teams struggled to maintain possession and create promising goal-scoring opportunities.

In the second half, Florida College created more offensive opportunities. The Falcons generated 10 shots in the second half, while the Bruins only produced four shots. BJU may have conceded the shot battle, but the “bend-but-don’t-break” mentality eventually earned the Bruins a win.

In the first 10-minute period of overtime, the Falcons controlled the ball but were unable to score. With just a couple  of minutes left, forward Kaitlyn Hummel made a great run up the sideline and was fouled 5 yards outside the penalty box. This gave the Bruins their best goal-scoring opportunity of the game. While two other Bruins faked shots to misdirect the Falcon keeper, Jennifer Wise fired a shot with her left foot and buried it into the low right corner of the net for the BJU victory.

Her teammates mobbed her in celebration of her game-winning free kick. Carmichael said the free kick was constructed in a Bruins practice and that practice did make perfect.

With this win, the Bruins swept their regular season matchups against the Florida College Falcons. The Bruins previously beat the Falcons 2-1 Oct. 2 in Temple Terrace, Florida.

The Bruins now look to build on this late nonconference win as they finish up the regular season.