The Colby women's soccer team closed out its season this past weekend, taking on Bates in the regular season finale and then Williams in the first round of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) tournament. Colby finished the season with a 6-8-1 overall record.

The Mules traveled to Lewiston last Friday with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Having already clinched a playoff berth the weekend before, the women were playing for position in the NESCAC tournament seedings where they could have finished as high as sixth. Bates got on the board first, finding the back of the net on a long distance strike with just under 10 minutes remaining in the first half.

The Mules went on the offensive in the second half, with Su-Lin Del Guercio '11 and co-captain Lexi Bohonnon '10 peppering the Bates goal in the final fifteen minutes of the game. Unfortunately for Colby, the Bates goalkeeper was up to the task and preserved the shutout for the already eliminated Bobcats. Colby goalkeeper Loni Pisani '11 was once again strong in between the pipes, making nine saves.

The loss put the Mules in the eighth seed for the playoffs, giving them a date with an undefeated 15-0 Williams team ranked 1 in New England and 2 in the nation. Colby had previously kept Williams off the scoreboard for over an hour in their first meeting, and looked to continue its stingy ways against the Ephs.

Gunning for its third consecutive league title, Williams scored twenty-three seconds into the game. The Ephs added goals in the 12th, 21st and 65th minutes to account for the final score of 4-0. Pisani made five saves in net for the Mules, and Leah Turino '11 and Kate Pistel '13 each put a shot on frame and pressured the Williams goalkeeper.

In spite of the sadness of the season being over, the team has a lot to be proud of this year. Colby made its second consecutive NESCAC tournament, earned its first win over Bowdoin in team history, and bettered its win total from last season. Nikki Pickering '12 and Katie Palano '12 shared the title of team-leading scorer this year, with each tallying three goals. In overall points, they were joined by Turino (one goal, four assists) and Pistel (two goals, two assists) in a four-way tie with six points each. Pisani played all but four minutes, 37 seconds in goal this year, and ended up finished second in the NESCAC in both total saves (113) and saves per game (7.53).

The team will graduate four seniors, all key players and captains. Bohonnon, Hannah Holbrook '10, Meg Edwards '10 and Meg Guay '10 all were regular starters who made key contributions every single game. They will all surely be missed as the team looks to continue the standard of success these seniors established this year. With a good young nucleus returning next year, the Mules look forward to next season.