Kennesaw State, in just its second season as a women's soccer program, captured the NCAA Division II championship on Saturday, beating Franklin Pierce, 2-0, as Laura Tucker scored a pair of goals at the Virginia Beach (Va.) Sportsplex.
The second-ranked Owls (25-1-0) denied No. 7 Franklin Pierce (22-3-0) its sixth NCAA title as Tucker netted her 22nd and 23rd goals of the season.
The redshirt freshman was selected the Most Outstanding Offensive player of the tournament. Katrina Hirsch won the defensive award.
''This championship took a lot of teamwork,'' Kennesaw State coach Rob King said. ''We have a great group of players, a good coaching staff, and the support of the administration that brought us in a year [before the first season] to recruit.''
Tucker scored from Alisa Taylor's feed in the 24th minute, then headed home Hirsch's indirect kick in the 84th to nail down the victory.
Sophomore goalkeeper Jessica Marek made seven saves for her fifth shutout in five NCAA tournament matches. The Owls posted shutouts in their final nine games this season.
Kennesaw State, from Kennesaw, Ga., is 43-2-0 in two seasons, falling with only one loss coming on the field. The Owls fell to 2002 champion Christian Brothers in September. They were eliminated on penalty kicks by North Florida in the quarterfinals last year, when the NCAA counted shootout results as wins and losses rather than ties.
NCAA DIVISION II
Final
Saturday, Dec. 6 at Virginia Beach, Va.
Kennesaw State 2 (Tucker 24, 84) Franklin Pierce 0
All-Tournament Team
Laura Tucker, Kennesaw State (Most Outstanding Offensive)
Katrina Hirsch, Kennesaw State (Most Outstanding Defensive)
Janae Gzehoviak, Kennesaw State
Rebecca Hall, Kennesaw State
Jessica Marek, Kennesaw State
Alissa Saylor, Kennesaw State
Laura Hislop, Franklin Pierce
Sonya Hughes, Franklin Pierce
Martta Makila, Franklin Pierce
Meghan Welcome, Franklin Pierce
Becca Fritz, Nebraska-Omaha
Megan Dickey, UC San Diego
Kristin Jones, UC San Diego