Photo Credit: Howard University
The HU Bisons defeated 3rd seeded Fairleigh Dickinson University 2-1 to clinch the 2024 NEC Championship Title. The lady Bisons had additional reasons to celebrate as team members earned five of the six NEC’s 2024 Women’s Soccer Awards: Defensive Player of the Year junior Rachel Suttle; Midfielder of the Year sophomore Samantha James; Goalkeeper of the Year sophomore Trinity Knox; Rookie of the Year freshman Gabriella Garcia-Terrell; and the NEC Tournament’s Most Valuable Player was senior striker Melea Earley. The Coach of the Year honors went to HU Coach Brent Leiba.
We hope that this title and stories highlighting teams like HU can raise the profile of HU’s athletic programs as well as underrepresented HBCU athletic programs as a whole.