RIDGELAND, Miss. – The No. 3 Northwest Mississippi Community College women’s soccer team secured its third consecutive NJCAA Region 23 championship Friday night, defeating No. 7 Jones College 3-0 at Freedom Ridge Park.
The victory, the Rangers’ 17th of the season, clinches a fourth straight appearance in the NJCAA national tournament.
After a defensive struggle in the opening minutes, Northwest (17-0) broke the deadlock in the 21st minute. Freshman defender Lena Scholze advanced the ball to Emma Jensen, who found Caroline Perkins in space. Perkins powered a shot from 24 yards out for her 15th goal of the season and a 1-0 lead.
“It was what we wanted from the beginning when we came here,” Scholze said. “It was our goal to win the state championship and obviously to get into nationals.”
The Rangers extended their lead early in the second half. In the 49th minute, Jensen headed in a cross from Allie Kimbrell to double the lead to 2-0.
Jones College fought back, coming close with a free kick that struck the crossbar and another that forced a diving save from Northwest goalkeeper Ann Marie Barton.
However, the Rangers’ depth sealed the game in the 61st minute. Reserve Caroline Hamm found space and launched a shot from the corner of the 18-yard box into the top shelf, making it 3-0.
Head Coach James Beattie credited the entire roster for the win on a humid night.
“In these occasions… it’s not just about soccer, it’s also about the physical aspect,” Beattie said. “We used every single player on the squad tonight and that’s big time.”
The Northwest defense held firm for the remainder of the match, securing the clean sheet and the championship.
“It’s kind of cool to get a clean sheet in the final game because that doesn’t happen that often and I’m very proud of my teammates,” Scholze said.
Northwest now advances to the NJCAA national tournament in Wichita, Kansas. The Rangers, who won the national title in 2024, expect to be a top-two seed and will likely begin pool play on Sunday, Nov. 16.
The official tournament seeding will be announced during the NJCAA selection show on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
The Northwest women celebrate what would turn out to be the game winning goal in the first half against Jones College in a 3-0 victory on Friday night. (Brian Oakley/nwccrangers.com)
Bob Bakken provides content for DeSoto County News and its social media channels. He is an award-winning broadcaster, along with being a reporter and photographer, and has done sports media relations work with junior and minor league hockey teams. Along with his reports on this website, you will find this veteran media member providing sports updates and high school football play-by-play on Rebel 95.3 FM Radio.
