Delta College women’s soccer wins first NJCAA DIII national championship
UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. (BVM) — The Delta College women’s soccer team has been waiting for this moment for quite some time.
In 2018 and 2019, the Pioneers finished as national runners-up. In 2020, they didn’t have a chance to compete due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But this season, Delta got back to the NJCAA Division III national championship game after defeating Jefferson College to win the NJCAA Midwest District. And after coming so close so many times, the Pioneers can finally say they’re on top.
Facing off against reigning champion Dallas College Brookhaven, the Pioneers dominated in a 4-1 victory to bring home a long-awaited title. The win capped off a perfect 12-0 season for Delta, and also helped them avenge its two-goal 2019 championship game loss to Brookhaven.
𝑵𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 🏆
Delta caps off an undefeated season with a 4-1 victory over Brookhaven in the 2020-21 #NJCAASoccer DIII Women's Championship‼️
This marks the first title victory in program history for the Pioneers!#PioneerPride #JUCOTough #Undefeated pic.twitter.com/wIGYiDLBOt
— DeltaPioneers (@delta_pioneers) June 5, 2021
With a unique season due to the pandemic, the win was all the more special for Coach Damon Amey’s team.
“It was this team working hard for 10 months not knowing if there would even be a tournament,” Amey said after the game. “They brought in everything we are about, and they never complained once. The offensive players showed up, and when they had the opportunities to put the ball into the back of the net, they did just that.”
The Pioneers have been led by many stars throughout the season. One of their best all year was Grand Blanc, Mich. native Faith Webber, and it was no different in the championship game, as the freshman scored the first goal of the contest to give Delta an early lead 18 minutes into the game.
Faith Webber doing what she does best ⚽️➡️🥅@delta_pioneers get on the board first thanks to this well-placed shot by Webber in the bottom left corner!
📺 https://t.co/O3OqYVnfCr pic.twitter.com/SnC4LucCmN
— NJCAA Network (@NJCAANetwork) June 5, 2021
Webber scored an impressive 24 goals this season which led the nation, and also had an impressive 12 assists across Delta’s 12 games. Anna Young, Carley Bolen and Rachel Hahn also contributed goals in the win.
The 2021 women’s soccer team is in rare company, as they are just the third national champion ever at Delta, joining the 1989 men’s basketball team and the 1999 softball team. The soccer team may have had to wait to join the list, but it was well worth it in a season to never forget.
