ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Patience is truly a virtue.
 
The champion Flagler College women's soccer team had to wait a full semester to compete due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and then on Saturday in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament championship, the top-seeded, No. 3-ranked Saints had to wait a little longer to hoist the trophy once again.  
 
It took two overtime periods and a penalty-kick shootout to crown a champion, but the wait was worth it. Tournament MVP Sarah-Lisa Dubel swatted away save after save for the Saints, while Lorena Lopez, Annie Habeeb, and Maria Castorino Mujica all netted their shots en route to a 1-1 (3-1 PK shootout) victory in the PBC Tournament championship over No. 3-seeded Columbus State University at Saints Field.
 
"We had a difficult first half, where we struggled to get any control of the game, but after half time, we established a little more possession and came into the game a little more," Flagler head coach Ashley Martin said. "Columbus was a great opponent and pushed us all the way. The shootout gave Sarah-Lisa an opportunity to show everyone exactly how good she is, and the team knew she would give us a chance to win, but our PK takers were cool under pressure."
 
Flagler (8-0-2) now has back-to-back PBC regular-season titles and tournament championships and is 31-1-3 over that span. Behind a lasting legacy, the senior and PBC Co-Player of the Year Dubel leaves St. Augustine with an unforgettable performance behind six saves and a brilliant PK shootout showing.
 
The result Saturday mirrored the one the pair of teams had in the regular season, minus this one didn't have as many shots as the Saints had six and CSU (6-1-2) fired off 12 with seven on goal. The lone Flagler shot on goal was all the Saints needed in regulation to force overtime when Castorino Mujica lifted her corner kick up and into the box, meeting a leaping Lopez as she headed in the go-ahead goal in the 75th minute.
 
Just two minutes later, the Cougars matched the score via Maddy Peterson, but it didn't dampen the Saints' spirits. Flagler kept everything in front of them for the final 35 minutes and took care of business to re-claim what it waited all year for: more hardware.
 
"This season has been an incredibly difficult season, but the players stayed disciplined and focused throughout and reaped the rewards," Martin said. "We worked hard all fall and came into the spring with a focus on being regular seasons and playoff champs, and I'm thrilled that the goal became reality."
 
All-Tournament Team
Rilee Seering, UNCP
Alexis Pittman, UNCP,
Abbie Crane, North Georgia
Kaleigh Killeen, North Georgia
Madeline Goodfellow, Columbus State
Kimmy Edgewith, Columbus State
Lorena Lopez, Flagler
Annie Habeeb, Flagler
Sara Carr, Flagler
Sarah-Lisa Dubel, MVP, Flagler
 
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