No. 1 ranked Messiah College repeated as the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer National Champions with a 1-0 victory over No. 12 Washington University in St. Louis on Saturday at the Blossom Soccer Complex in San Antonio, Texas. This marked the third national championship (2005, 2008, 2009) for Messiah in school history.

"Messiah is a very, very good team. We congratulate head coach Scott Frey for putting together a nice game plan today," said Washington University second-year head coach Jim Conlon. "They had us on our heels in the first half with three forwards, and we were able to adjust. They did get the goal in the first half, but we just could not get the equalizer."

Messiah (25-0-1) dominated the first 20 minutes of play, attacking the Washington University end with six shots. Senior Amanda Naeher, the 2008 NSCAA Division III National Player of the Year, got the Falcons on the scoreboard at the 23:28 mark for the lone goal of the game. Naeher took a pass from junior Erin Hench and sent a shot from just outside the WU box to the near corner that just got by the outstretched arms of freshman goalkeeper Clara Jaques.

The Falcons had a 9-3 advantage in shots in the first 45 minutes play, with four shots on goal. Jaques kept Washington U. in the game with three saves.

Washington U. came out in the second half with some urgency, and put the pressure on the Falcons in the first five minutes of play. The Bears recorded their first shot on goal at the 48:20 mark on a header by senior Elyse Hanly that was saved by Messiah goalkeeper Autumn Reilly.

The Falcons nearly added an insurance goal with less than seven minutes to play. A cross was sent into the Washington U. box over the head of Jaques. With an open net, Naeher’s header just went over the crossbar to keep it a one-goal game. WUSTL almost tied the contest with less than two minutes to play. A ball was sent into the box to Hanly, who’s shot was just off the mark.

The Falcons, who were making their sixth-straight trip to the Final Four, outshot Washington U., 16-6, and had a 2-0 advantage in corner kicks. Messiah allowed just seven goals in 2009 and ends the season on a 56-match unbeaten streak.

"The seniors set the tone for the entire season and came in very focused," Conlon added. "We put together a plan for this season, and the student-athletes followed through with it."

Washington University, which ends its season tying a school record with a 17-4-3 overall mark, graduates eight seniors, which led Washington U. to its highest finish in school history.

Emily Bylsma, Paula Davis, Hanly, Libby Held, Becca Heymann, Sam Murphy, Caryn Rosoff and Carter Schwarberg guided Washington U. to a 66-15-5 (.797) overall record with four NCAA Tournament appearances and four University Athletic Association (UAA) conference championships.

"I could not have had a better senior year. We had our ups and down throughout the year, but that only made us stronger as a team," said Held. "I am very proud of our team. We are building for the future and want to eventually win a national championship."

Bear Notebook: This was the first meeting in school history between Washington U. and Messiah … Washington University was making its second appearance in the Final Four (1997, 2009) … Held and sophomores Emma Brown and Lee Ann Felder were named to the NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team.