Dec. 5, 2008

Daytona Beach, Fla. – (updated bracket) The Championship game of the 2008 NAIA Women's Soccer National Championship is set as No. 3 Lee (Tenn.) will take on No.  5 Concordia (Ore.) on Saturday, Dec. 6. Both teams are seeking their first national title in the sport. The Championship, hosted by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, is played at the Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium.

CHAMPIONSHIP FINAL PREVIEW (Saturday, Dec. 6):
• Game #15: No. 3 Lee (Tenn.) vs. No.  5 Concordia (Ore.), 6:00 p.m. EST
This will be the second-ever Championship game appearance for both schools.  Concordia made it to the Championship final in 2004, losing to Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 2-0.  Lee made it to the 2005 final, losing to Martin Methodist (Tenn.) 1-0.

Lee enters with a 23-1-1 season mark and ended the regular season ranked No. 2 in the NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll. The Lady Flames, making their fifth Championship appearance, were the Southern States Athletic Conference regular season and tournament champion.  The tie in Lee’s record came in the Quarterfinals against Martin Methodist (Tenn.).  Lee got the “Martin Methodist Monkey” off their back, advancing past the RedHawks in a penalty kick shootout.  Martin Methodist had defeated the Lady Flames in the tournament in each of the past three seasons.  The Lady Flames are led by Head Coach Matt Yelton.

Fifth-seeded Concordia is the last undefeated team remaining, coming in with a 23-0-1 record.  The Cavaliers were the Cascade Collegiate Conference regular season and tournament champion and finished the regular season ranked No. 4 in the NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll.  Concordia defeated No. 1 seed Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) in the Semifinals 3-0, the first goals scored against the Blue Raiders since Oct. 15.  The Cavaliers, making their eighth Championship appearance, are led by Head Coach Grant Landy.

SEMIFINAL RECAP:
Game #13: No. 5 Concordia (Ore.) 3, No. 1 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 0

The first Semifinal match featured No. 1 seed Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) going up against undefeated Concordia (Ore.) to determine who would move on to the Championship final.

Concordia took an early 1-0 lead as Jessica Ramback scored the lone goal of the first half on a pass from Shea Miller in the 12^th minute.  That was the first goal Lindsey Wilson had surrendered since Oct. 15.

The Cavaliers stretched the lead to 2-0 on a goal from Caitlin Verhofstadt in the 75^th minute and Jessica Ramback netter her second goal of the evening to make the score 3-0 with just one second remaining in the game.

Concordia improves to 23-0-1 on the year while Lindsey Wilson ends their season at 21-2.

The Cavaliers advance to their second Championship final in school history and will take on the winner of Lee (Tenn.) and Trinity Christian (Ill.) at 6 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, Dec. 6.

Game #14: No. 3 Lee (Tenn.) 3, No. 10 Trinity Christian (Ill.) 2

Semifinal match number two saw No. 3 seed Lee (Tenn.) take on tenth-seeded Trinity Christian (Ill.) for the chance to move on to the Championship final.

Lee got on the scoreboard quickly when Sandra Kaelin scored on a pass from Christiane Christensen, giving the Lady Flames a 1-0 lead.  They would stretch their lead to 2-0 on another goal from Kaelin in the tenth minute.  Jamie Achten would make it 3-0 as she scored on a Lauren Good assist.  That would be the score as the teams headed into the break.

The lead was cut to 3-1 on an own goal by Lee in the 78^th minute.  The Trolls made it a 3-2 game when Carly Comerouski scored in the 86^th minute.  That would be the final goal of the game and Lee held on to win 3-2

Lee improves to 23-1-1 on the year while Trinity Christian ends their season at 23-2.

The Lady Flames advance to their second Championship final in school history and will take on Concordia (Ore.) at 6 p.m. (EST) on Saturday, Dec. 6.