Wheaton, Ill. -- It was a Saturday night to remember at Joe Bean Stadium as the Wheaton women's soccer team captured their first conference tournament title since 2017 and booked their ticket to the upcoming NCAA Division III women's soccer tournament. The Thunder overcame a tough North Central side that upset Wheaton on home turf only ten days before by winning 2-0 thanks to second half goals from Morgan Beamer and Jensen Ellis. The win improves Wheaton's overall record to 11-7-2 and reaffirms their status as the class of the CCIW.
 
By both teams' standards the opening exchanges of the championship match were relatively quiet, particularly on the back of North Central's stunning four-goal haul in the first ten minutes of their semifinal win on Wednesday. The first shot of Saturday's contest did not arrive until the 13th minute, and it was an off-target effort from the Cardinals. Wheaton's Carlye Fatum claimed the initial shot on frame of the evening, forcing a save from North Central's Madison Smith on 17 minutes. Shortly after the ensuing corner kick, the visitors flipped the field and fired off back-to-back attempts, though neither found the target.
 
Wheaton only managed two shots on goal in the opening 45, the second of which came three minutes before the halftime break, when Tori Seeland, scorer of the thunderbolt that won Wednesday's semifinal for Wheaton, hit a low effort towards the bottom left of the Cardinals' net. North Central picked up two shots on target themselves in the closing minutes of the half, and Wheaton claimed a pair of corner kicks, but the breakthrough was not forthcoming. Just as they did in their first meeting, the two sides entered the halftime break level.
 
The third-seeded visitors from Naperville began the second half in blistering fashion, winning four corner kicks and going close with a shot all within the space of two minutes. This wave of pressure led to some nerves in the home side's supporters section, but the Wheaton back line survived the onslaught and the Thunder righted the ship as the half wore on. Not long after this flurry, it was Wheaton's turn to go on the offensive. Sarah Max put forth two attempts, the second of which tested Smith in the North Central net. Seeland and Fatum each added a shot to round out an action-packed first ten minutes of the second half. 
 
Between the 58 and 61 minute marks, the Cardinals created three more attacking opportunities and it began to feel inevitable that the away side would find the go-ahead goal before their hosts could. But Wheaton managed to move the ball up the wing and win a free kick on the right side of the North Central box. The sophomore left back Morgan Beamer, recently named to the CCIW all-conference second team, stepped up to take the kick and ended up springing a crucial surprise. Instead of crossing the ball into the penalty area, Beamer elected to go for goal and caught the North Central keeper out at her near post. There was some initial confusion as Smith managed to claw the ball back out before it landed over the goal line, but the linesman was quick to signal to the head official that the entirety of the ball had crossed the line. The goal was Beamer's first of the season, and it could not have come at a better time for the top-seeded Thunder. 
 
Rather than sitting back and simply trying to protect their existing lead, Wheaton bravely pushed forward in pursuit of a second goal that they knew could prove decisive in the outcome of the match. The minutes immediately following Beamer's free kick saw the home side earn two corner kicks and two more attempts towards the Cardinals' goal. Almost exactly ten minutes after breaking the deadlock, Wheaton got their reward for said pressure and doubled their advantage.This time the goal arrived via a smooth team effort from open play. Audrey Sexson received the ball on the right wing following an important tackle by Fatum, and after a nice drop of the shoulder and spin to avoid her defender, Sexson lofted a peach of a ball into the box. Senior Jensen Ellis, playing in what was likely to be her last match on home turf, rose to meet it and calmly steered the ball past the North Central goalkeeper with a flick of her head. The large Joe Bean crowd erupted, and the players could finally begin to relax as it became clear that their conference campaign would end with the biggest prize of all. North Central only managed one shot on target after falling behind in the second half, and it seemed most appropriate that Lauren Ketchum and Izzy McNally, two cornerstones of the Wheaton defensive unit throughout the season, ended their home careers with one final clean sheet. 
 
The full match stats reflected the relatively even nature of the contest, with Wheaton topping their opponents in shots and shots on target, but the Cardinals forced more saves than their hosts. The Thunder also edged possession of the ball, 53-47%, across the 90 minutes. Both teams earned five corner kicks in the match. Just like the men's title game between these two schools earlier in the day, the match was peppered with whistles from the referee. There were 24 total fouls called and one yellow card issued to either side.
 
As a result of tonight's win, Wheaton secured their first regular season + conference title double in four years and can now turn their attention to the national stage. The selection show for the 2021 NCAA Tournament is scheduled for noon on Monday, November 8th, and the Thunder will learn their postseason fate at that time.