Perkins’ OT Heroics Send Northwest Back to NJCAA Final

WICHITA, Kan. — The No. 3 Northwest Mississippi Community College women’s soccer team is headed back to the NJCAA Division II national championship match after a dramatic 3-2 overtime victory over No. 7 Jones College in Thursday’s semifinal.

Caroline Perkins delivered the decisive header in the 95th minute, capping a two-goal performance that lifted the Rangers into Saturday’s final against No. 4 Heartland Community College.

Northwest trailed 2-1 with just over 16 minutes remaining before Perkins equalized less than a minute later. Emma Jensen opened the scoring in the 60th minute, while Jones answered with goals from Jameyah Hubbard and Sherline King to briefly seize control.

Head coach James Beattie praised his team’s resilience. “Playing a team for the third time is always going to be difficult,” Beattie said. “Jones is really well coached, and they made it hard on us. But our players responded when it mattered most.”

The Rangers outshot Jones 17-12 and held a 9-6 edge in corner kicks. Goalkeeper Ann Marie Barton recorded two saves for her 16th win of the season. Perkins now leads Northwest with four goals in the tournament, while Jensen has three goals and three assists.

Northwest improved to 3-0 all-time in overtime matches at the national tournament, including wins in 2022 and 2024.

The Rangers will face Heartland, Illinois at 1 p.m. Saturday in Wichita with a chance to repeat as national champions. Northwest defeated Heartland 5-3 earlier this season.

“This is what we set out for,” Beattie said. “We made another memory in the semifinals, and now we have the opportunity to make one more in the final.”