For the first time since Lancaster Bible joined the North Eastern Athletic Conference in 2011, the Chargers will not be playing in the NEAC Semifinals as SUNY Polytechnic took advantage of its limited chances and defeated Lancaster Bible, 2-1 in Saturday's NEAC Quarterfinal matchup on Charger Field.

The Wildcats (9-9-2) took advantage of two of their only scoring chances all day and ended the Chargers chances of a NEAC title. The loss does not end Lancaster Bible's season as they will take part in the NCCAA Division I playoffs at a date to be determined.

Saturday's game began poorly for Lancaster Bible as SUNY Polytechnic scored just 5:35 into the contest. Brittany Waterbury scored off a rebound as she collected the ball inside the box and scored into the bottom left-hand corner of the net.

The teams traded possession for a few minutes after the goal, but the Chargers slowly began to possess the ball more-and-more. Despite the possession, Lancaster Bible couldn't manage many good scoring chances and only outshot SUNY Polytechnic, 6-3 in the first half.

The Wildcats were opportunistic once again in the second half as McKenna Hungerford scored her sixth goal of the season after she took advantage of a poor defensive clear by the Chargers. Hungerford collected the ball just inside the box and scored into the lower right-hand corner of the goal. 

Lancaster Bible's Emily Beltran scored 3:56 later on a blast from 25 yards out to cut the deficit to one, but the Chargers would not get any closer and lost the Wildcats two weeks after defeating them, 5-0.

"[SUNY Polytechnic] outhustled us and challenged a lot of our possession," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Ken Craul said. "They took advantage of their opportunities and we didn't."

When asked if the team was looking past SUNY Polytechnic because of defeating the Wildcats, 5-0 two weeks ago, Craul didn't think that played into Saturday's game, despite the Chargers knowing they would get a crack at top-seeded Penn St. Berks in the NEAC Semifinals if they advanced.

"I don't think we looked beyond today, SUNY Polytechnic just played better than us," Craul said. "But we all definitely had Penn St. Berks on our radar because of how close we played them during the regular season."

For the game, Lancaster Bible outshot SUNY Polytechnic, 14-6 and held a 3-2 edge in corner kicks.

As was previously mentioned, Saturday's loss does not end Lancaster Bible's season as they will either play Houghton or Roberts Wesleyan depending on how each team finishes its regular season. In NCCAA Division I, if a team does not win their conference championship, but finishes over the .500 mark, they are eligible for the NCCAA Division I playoffs. Houghton is already eligible as they finished over .500, but did not make their conference tournament. Roberts Wesleyan must win on Sunday to finish .500. They cannot make the conference playoffs, thus if they win, they too will participate in the NCCAA Division I playoffs. If all three teams are eligible, a conference call will take place to determine seedings and matchups. 

"Our season isn't over and we have an opportunity to extend it whenever we play next," Craul said. "That being said, I think we need to regain our focus and much of that is mental more than physical."

With the chances of hosting another game almost non-existent, Saturday was the final home for seniors Shannon McNally, Sarah Heilenman, Monica Lambertson, Danielle Good, Olivia Rentzel and Meaghan Williams.

Notes:
-The NEAC Semifinals, which take place next Saturday, November 8, will feature SUNY Polytechnic vs. Penn St. Berks and Cazenovia vs. Penn St. Abington. The winners will meet in Sunday's NEAC Final.

-Beltran's 14 goals are the sixth most all-time and it is the 11th time in program history a player has scored 14 goals or more.