Bushnell University

HELENA, Mont.  – The Bushnell women's soccer team claimed a 1-0 victory over Carroll on Saturday, earning their first-ever victory over the Saints and inching closer to a CCC postseason bid. That bid was secured on Sunday with a Warner Pacific loss, giving the Beacons the No. 8 seed for the conference tournament. 
 
The historic victory moves Bushnell (6-7-3, 5-6-1) to 1-10-2 all-time against Carroll, and they are now 1-5 all-time on the Saints home turf.
 
"I couldn't be more proud of this team today," said Head Coach Tori Malone. "We believed from start to finish and showed incredible fight, grit, and a relentless will to win. This group never stopped believing in themselves or each other, and they earned every bit of this road win."
 
Although the Beacons were out-shot 10-5 in the contest, the win was fueled by defense as Bushnell allowed just one shot on goal, the fewest given up this season. Starting defender Malia Banry (pictured) said, "It was a hard fought battle but I am so proud of the way our team came together and we kept our back line organized all the way to the end."
 
Bushnell's goal came in the 70th minute when Elidia Cervantes-Carlos took a long pass in stride from Mia Morales and sprinted past a pair of defenders before firing a 25-yard angled strike into the left corner of the net for the fourth game-winner of her career.   
 
"It was a tough game today," said Cervantes-Carlos, "but we fought hard until the very end. I am so proud of how our team performed. Philippians 4:13 is what got me through the game today. I thank God for giving me the strength to help get us the win."
 
UP NEXT: The Beacons closed out the regular season with 16 points in the standings, jumping over Warner Pacific into eighth-place. Bushnell had to sweat out WPU's final game, which took place on Sunday morning. The Knights were unable to defeat second-place Southern Oregon University, allowing the Beacons to seal the final spot in the conference tournament.  

Bushnell now has a date with CCC regular-season champion and No. 1 seed College of Idaho at 1:00 pm on Saturday, November 7 at Lithia and Driveway Fields in Medford, Oregon.