UPDATED: Dream Season Comes To An End for Tewksbury Girls

The clock struck midnight for Cinderella in Danvers last night.

, which was as close to an uninvited guest at the MIAA state tournament as you can get, ran into a wicked stepmother in the form of the Danvers High Falcons, and came out of the wrong end of a 3-0 score.

The loss eliminates the Redmen from the state tournament and ends an improbable season that saw the while winning the Merrinack Valley Conference Small School Championship.

Danvers, which entered the game with a 15-2-2 record, was seeded second in the MIAA Division 2 North Sectional bracket. But for the first 40 minutes of the game it was unclear as to who the favorite was, as the Redmen held the potent Falcon offense in check while sophomore goaltender Rebecca Davies pitched a first-half shutout, and the game was tied 0-0 at the half.

"Danvers is a talented team," said Tewksbury coach Kelly Barrio. "They have some kids who can just turn and rip it. But we really hung in there against them. We stepped up to their level of play."

Danvers freshman Kylie Plaza, who plays on the state Olympic Development team alongside Tewksbury freshmen Kelly Quigley and Aly Spencer, broke the halftime deadlock with a laser shot from 20 yards out early in the second half. Tewksbury battled back and had mutliple chances to tie the game, but Danvers salted the game away with goals from Cory Persson and Brittany Russo in the final seven minutes of the contest.

"The final score doesn't show how well our girls played," Barrio said. "Most of the kids realized that after the game, too. Their hearts and the spirits were up, and that's all that matters."

The loss ended a storybook season for Tewksbury, which had come off a 3-14-1 record in 2009 and surprised everyone in Eastern Mass. soccer circles by winning the MVC Small School title and qualifying for the state tournament. The Redmen upset 7th seeded Saugus last Saturday, 3-2 on penalty kicks, to advance to the second round against Danvers.

had an outstanding game on defense for the Redmen, while sophomore Caitlin Ludka,  freshman Sara Semenza and senior Lauren Spencer played well at midfield.

"These kids just put their hearts out there all year long," Barrio said. "It was great to see them do so well in the tournament. They played like they belonged. They played like they deserved to be there."

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