Beth Bartasavich scored the only goal for the Lady Centurions, who fell short versus Bergen who beat them 2-1, in first round action of the Region XIX playoffs, effectively ending their season.

In a game that was largely played in Bergen’s defensive zone, the Lady Centurions couldn’t find their scoring touch early.

It looked as though several offensive possessions could bear fruit, but one too many touches and not enough solid shots on goal yielded only frustration on the Bucks’ side of the ball.

Bergen tallied the game’s first goal on a beautiful ball off the foot of Bergen mid-fielder Aya Saleh. The shot was perfectly placed into the upper right corner of the net.

Bucks goalkeeper Morgan D’Apolito said, “That was a perfect goal, in the upper 90s.

I didn’t even get a hand on it.”

The Lady Centurions started the second half with a sense of urgency, only to fall behind 2-0 on another long-range shot from Saleh.

D’Apolito remarked, “This time I was there, tried to punch it up and out, but was off-balance and it went in under the crossbar.”

The Lady Centurions suffered a letdown when an apparent goal was disallowed when the linesman called the scoring play off-side.

Not to be denied, Bucks continued to dictate the play, forcing Bergen into a costly mistake – a handball in the penalty area.

Bartasavich, responding to the positive urging of her teammates, neatly tucked the penalty kick under the crossbar to draw Bucks closer at 2-1.

Unfortunately for the Lady Centurions, the match drew to a close – and their post-season with it – with Bucks on the losing side of a 1-goal match.

After the game, Coach Brett Pierson said, “We controlled the action early, and if we played with the same intensity of the second half, the outcome could have been different.”

The Lady Centurions also appeared slightly hobbled out on the playing field. They played without offensive threat Kelly Scheer, and co-captains Samantha Eiser and Samantha Kilpatrick both played through knee injuries.

Not a team to stand behind excuses, D’Apolito said, “We needed to play with urgency throughout the game, not just at the end of the game.”

D’Apolito will likely anchor the Lady Centurions next season, as she returns in net next fall, but will be missing some key faces out there on the pitch.

Playmakers Jess Williams and Scheer, as well as co-captains Eiser and Kilpatrick, will be moving on to greener pastures.

Bucks will look to solid finishers like Bartasavich and Gina Shurdich to fill that void next season.

While the feeling on the field was somewhat bittersweet, the Lady Centurions know they can hold their heads high, finishing a rewarding season with a 9-4 overall record.