DAYTONA BEACH — After the Daytona State Falcons lost to Eastern Florida State 2-0 on Sept. 20, coach Hope Clark sent them a quote.
“It’s OK to fall, but when you rise back up, you better burn it down like the whole damn fire.”
More than two months later, the Falcons were chanting the phrase “burn it down” Monday — as they celebrated their first national championship.
After Sept. 20, they never fell again.
They rattled off 15 straight victories, with the final one coming Saturday. Tied 1-1 with Arizona Western in overtime in Wichita, Kansas, Sienna Gillespie fed Shaneil Buckley with a pass, and Buckley kicked in the title-winning goal.
Monday, their bus finished the 22-hour drive back to campus. It arrived to a celebration at Daytona State’s soccer field, where hundreds of supporters gathered and cheered the Falcons on.
They walked onto the pitch in a single-file with smiles on their faces. Freshman goalkeeper and tournament MVP Julianna Trujillo led the line and carried the trophy, raising it to the fans as the Queen song “We Are The Champions” played.
“It feels amazing,” Trujillo said. “I was so excited. I believed in everybody. I’m just so thankful for my teammates and my coaches for everything and putting all the effort into this last game and just winning our goals.”
The group had high expectations at the beginning of the season. The Falcons went 14-2 and advanced to the Region 8 championship against Eastern Florida State in 2023.
“I knew we’d be really good on paper,” Clark said. “But this is the hard part about the NJCAA: We brought in 21 new players this year. I’m a big culture coach, so to get that culture and them bonded off the bat, that is your biggest question mark every year. You know you’re good on paper, but are they going to mesh? Are they going to vibe?”
They started 4-3. But the answer to Clark’s questions quickly became “yes.”
“This year is so much closer, the bond and the connection we all have,” said Sophia Varga, a sophomore center back and team captain. “We’re one big family, so the dynamic on and off the field is just so much closer and tighter.”
That translated. Specifically the bus trips to and from road matches, where karaoke and dancing weren’t rare, said Varga.
“We would bring that team bonding and the chemistry we built off the field, we put it on the field,” Varga said. “That’s when we started our 15-game win streak. I was like, ‘Wow, this team is insane. We can’t lose.’ ”
The on-field formula was simple and dominant: score a lot of goals and don’t give up many.
In 22 matches, Daytona State posted 88 goals. Nine times, it scored at least five.
And the Falcons featured almost as many shutouts (13) as goals allowed (15).
On Oct. 21, already winners of six in a row, the Falcons got a rematch with Eastern Florida State. They won 2-1.
They met two more times over the following two weeks in important situations. First, for the Region 8 championship and then for the NJCAA Southeast District Championship and a bid to the national tournament.
Daytona State claimed both in shutouts (6-0 and 4-0).
“After that (6-0) game, I was like, ‘Man, when we play together just like we did in that game, we can beat anyone and we can be national champions,’ ” said redshirt sophomore midfielder Alejandra Espinosa, who serves as a team captain with Varga.
The Falcons marched through Pool B of the national bracket by defeating Seminole State 2-0 and Cowley 5-2 last week. That brought them to the semifinals.
For much of their showdown with the top-seeded Iowa Western Reivers, the two teams remained tied. Each tallied a first-half goal.
In the 83rd minute, the Reivers retook the lead and clung to it. That is until Jimena Castro and the Falcons charged for the equalizer with 19 seconds left in regulation.
Following two scoreless overtime periods, Daytona State prevailed in penalty kicks. Trujillo made two critical saves and chipped in the winning shot.
“They know how to win,” Clark said. “… That’s how we scored a goal in the last 19 seconds of that match. Because we went in a pushing system and I knew they’d get it done. We’d already practiced it. We practiced the exact same scenario. It’s really unbelievable it came to fruition in the tournament.”
Varga smiled.
“I didn’t want to go back to penalty kicks in the finals,” she said.
But here the Falcons were, in another nailbiter Saturday.
Less than five minutes into the national championship match, Gillespie handed Daytona State the lead with a goal. The Matadors knotted it at 1-1 in the 32nd minute. Neither scored in the second half.
At the end of regulation, the Falcons huddled together. Clark spoke first. Then, the players hyped each other up.
They held an advantage. After drawing a red card, Arizona Western was a player down. Overtime would be 11-on-10.
“I had belief in my team we were going to get it done,” Varga said.
Didn’t take long.
Five minutes into the first overtime, Gillespie fitted a perfect pass to Buckley, who found the back of the net.
Burnt down. No penalty kicks necessary.
Clark: “I honestly didn’t realize the game was over. I don’t know what I was thinking. I had totally forgotten it was golden goal, so I was just like, ‘OK, yes!’ And then, everyone started going, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, we just won.’ ”
Trujillo: “In the beginning, I couldn’t see because there were so many players in my view. I was thinking Arizona Western was going to get it because of how slow it was going in. But once I saw (Buckley) celebrating, I immediately ran to Soph and started hugging her. We’re rolling around on the field. It felt amazing. We finally did it, and I felt enjoyment everywhere.”
Espinosa: “All I can remember is that I was so tired, but I was like, ‘We’re done. We did it!’ I put my hands on my head because I could not believe it. Then, I ran to everyone that was celebrating. It was great.”
After collecting the trophy and a few awards — Trujillo the Tournament MVP, Gillespie the Most Outstanding Offensive Player and Clark the Coach of the Tournament — the Falcons celebrated with dinner.
Desserts for everyone, of course.
Each player and coach donned the championship shirts and hats.
Sunday, they hopped on the bus for the long ride back. They crafted a music playlist and listened to it as they pulled back onto campus.
The playlist name?
“Natty champs.”
