Lakeland, FL - The record-breaking season for the Patriots came to an end Saturday night as UC fell to the Southeastern Fire 2-3 in the second round of the NAIA National Tournament. The Pats finish their season with a 15-4-1 overall record.
 
The Patriots came out determined in the opening half and 3:27 into the match Ainhoa Camara connected with Naira Lopez in the box to slip a shot past the Southeastern goalie and give UC the first lead of the night 1-0. Both teams continued to fight for goal scoring opportunities and Southeastern got their first chance, earning a penalty kick at the 35:36 mark. SEU's Gabriela Labrador aimed to take the kick, but Nicole Panis was prepared and stopped a low shot to keep the Fire scoreless. Minutes later, SEU took advantage of a corner kick and tied up the match at 1-1 in the 12'. For the next 30 minutes, Panis and a backline composed of Jenna Rockwell, Amy Anderson, Emily Willoughby, Selena Barnett, and Alanna Skinner held the Fire to three shots on goal and sent the match into halftime tied at 1-1.

UC looked strong coming into the second half, but were caught off-guard early by a thru ball pass to SEU's Uchenna Kanu inside the box to give the Fire the 2-1 advantage and their first lead of the night in the 48'. Although down, Cumberlands continued to attack and in the in 58' Willoughby worked the ball upfield to Lopez, who found Randez to finish the transition with a goal to the upper left post. Randez's goal tied the match up at 2-2 with 32:26 remaining. The score remained that way for the next 25 minutes with both teams unable to convert on opportunities. With just under five minutes remaining in the game, Southeastern took advantage of a deflected ball and sent it into the back of the net to score to game-winning goal and making the final score 2-3 in favor of the Fire.

Along with 16 other teams, the Southeastern Fire will advance to the final site tournament in Orange Beach, AL on December 2-7 for the remainder of the NAIA National Tournament.

The Patriots compiled a historical season including setting several new records in the Hamilton era. Not only is this the farthest the team has made it into the postseason in program history, this is also the first time in the Hamilton era that the Pats made it to the MSC Championship Match. UC also secured nine shutout victories, which ties with the most shutout wins in a season since 2007, when the Pats tallied ten. Earlier this season, Head Coach Steve Hamilton became the winningest coach in program history with his 44^th win that came in the 6-1 victory over Asbury.
 
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