The Lions came up short against the Burke Bengals in a tough semifinal game with a final score of 15-13 on Wednesday, despite beating them earlier in the season.

“This game was the most challenging one yet. We got a rough start at the beginning and never were able to bounce back,” freshman Avital Friedman said. “We were quite close at the end but [had] a lot of sloppy mistakes … [that] held us back from advancing.”

After a rocky start with numerous errors in the first inning putting the Lions down six runs, the Lions fought back, scoring six runs in the third inning and five in the seventh; however, the Bengals protected their lead by scoring four runs in the sixth inning.

The Lions had many strong hits including several singles and double, as well as a home run by sophomore and captain Jane Trainor. The team had a number of impressive defensive plays including a double play by freshman Ellie Hasenberg and sophomore Sophia Miller and difficult catches by many other players.

English department chair and team coach Tom Worden noted that even though the Lions lost, they were still able to maintain their positive attitudes and have fun on the field. Worden added that the team is excited to play together again next year.

“It was such an incredible opportunity to play on the team this season. I cannot wait to be back on the team next year and get even better,” freshman Ariella Ball said.

Since the team is relatively young with only freshmen and sophomores, they are hopeful that their experience will pay off next season.

“I think we had a really great season with a lot of potential. We never gave up and [we always] put [in] 100% effort, I’m excited to see where we get next year with the same group,” Trainor said.