Lady Pilots win fifth NCCAA title

The Bethel College Lady Pilots basketball team captured their fifth NCCAA National Championship against Ecclesia College. The Pilots won by a score of 74-56 against overmatched Ecclesia College. It was pretty amazing that both teams were in the championship game. Bethel managed to get into the final game by a buzzer beating Heather Seyfred three pointer to propel the Pilots to the final. Ecclesia on the other hand played the entire tournament with just six players. To be able to make the championship game with that few of players is impressive and unheard of. The Pilots took control of the game early and built an 11 point halftime lead with the score being 31-20. The Pilots had a brief letdown in the second half and let their lead slip to six with around 10 minutes to play. However the Ecclesia comeback was short lived as Bethel increased their lead to as much as 24 as the score was 68-44 late in the second half before winning by 18. Head Coach Jody Martinez was pleased with the way his team finished off the season. “It’s been a great journey and a great team effort,” said Martinez. “Playing in a competitive Mid-Central Conference has also prepared us for this kind of tournament. One of our keys entering this post season was to use this opportunity as a springboard into next season. With no seniors on this year’s roster, some strong possible additions incoming and a lot of hard work and improvement from our younger players, the best is yet to come for this team.” The victory also gave Martinez his 300th career victory. The championship run was the perfect way to finish the up and down season.