Babba guided Brayn soccer to excellence: Moves on to Elon
March 2018
DAYTON, Tenn. – Paul Babba, who took over the helm of the Bryan College Women’s Soccer program in December of 2015, has closed his time on the hill where he will carry his coaching talents to NCAA Div. I Elon University located in Elon, North Carolina. Neil Payne, a long-time friend of Babba, was recently tabbed the new Head Coach at Elon, which adds to the smoothness of the transition for Babba as he takes over the Assistant Coaching role.
“My family and I have really enjoyed being a part of the Bryan community,” explained Babba. “Bryan is a special place that we will remember fondly. It has been a privilege and a highlight of my career to work with the women’s soccer team here at Bryan. The girls’ enthusiasm, joy for the game, and love for each other is always evident. The future is bright for this young group, and I know the Lord will bless them. I want to thank Taylor Hasty for his leadership and support, and the rest of the Athletic Department who have been a joy to work with.”
During his two seasons as the Lion’s skipper, Babba has been able to transform the Bryan women’s soccer program from a last-place team to an Appalachian Athletic Conference powerhouse.
In his season debut, Babba helped the Lions to an incredible feat, battling their way to a 10-10-2 overall mark, which was the winningest season in recorded history. The team kept the momentum alive as the year came to a close, knocking off top-seeded teams in the Appalachian Athletic Conference Tournament before claiming the Runner-Up title. A trio of Lions went on to earn spots on the All-Tournament Team. During the 2016 season, Babba coached three players to All-AAC First Team honors while having seven named to the All-Academic Team. The dedication in the classroom as well as on the field resulted in six being named Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes.
Despite being projected to finish 10th in 2016 and then 5th in 2017, Babba and the Lions set out to prove the league wrong, which is exactly what they did. On Tuesday Oct. 24, 2017, Bryan clinched their first-ever regular-season conference championship by defeating Point University (Ga.) and received an automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament, marking just the fourth national tournament appearance for the Lions. Bryan ended the chapter on a remarkable record-breaking season when they went head-to-head with the No. 1 team in the country, Martin Methodist College (Tenn.). Even though the top-ranked RedHawks escaped with a 1-0 overtime victory, the Lions rose to the occasion and delivered on many levels. Their efforts resulted in the program’s winningest season in history, finishing 12-7 overall and 9-2 in conference play.
The overwhelming success gave way to Babba being crowned the AAC Coach of the Year, while numerous Lions received individual honors from the conference. Ruth Rosales was named Offensive Player of the Year, Morgana Hardt da Silva earned Defensive Player of the Year, and Makena Giles garnered Freshman of the Year. In addition to the individual awards, Bryan had more players than any other schools represented on the All-Conference First Team (4), had two named to the All-Conference Second Team, and had six shine in the classroom and collect All-Academic honors.
Two Lions went on to be named Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes while Rosales collected NAIA All-American honors, becoming the first-ever player for Bryan women’s soccer in recorded history to earn NAIA All-American recognition. Rosales was only one of two players representing the AAC on this year’s NAIA All-America teams.
With a young and highly skilled team, the only direction the Lions are headed is up as the NAIA noticed the talent that the AAC holds with Tennessee Wesleyan University jumping to 11th in the final Women’s Soccer Coaches’ Top-25 poll and Bryan receiving votes, finishing just outside of the top-25. It marks the first time since Sept. 21, 2010 that the Lions have received votes.
“Coach Babba has done an excellent job leading our Women’s Soccer program here at Bryan, guiding them to the first Appalachian Athletic Conference Championship in program history,” said Athletic Director Taylor Hasty. “We are thankful for his service here at Bryan College and wish him and his family all the best as they move to North Carolina.”