It was oh so close.
The Gov. Livingston girls' soccer season came to an end with a hard-fought 2-1 loss at the hands of visiting Shore Regional Monday in the semi-finals of the NJSIAA Central Group 2 Tournament held in Berkeley Heights.
A strong start to the game provided the Lady Highlanders with three good scoring opportunities but they failed to capitalize. Around the 20th minute, Grace O'Brien scored on a beautiful free kick just outside the box and into the upper right corner for a 1-0 lead.
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That lead lasted until two minutes left in the first half when Shore was awarded a penalty kick for a foul in the box. They converted and tied the game at 1-1.
The second half opened with the Lady Highlanders creating some nice scoring chances, but like the first half, failed to score and that's when Shore took control of the game. They scored the winning goal in the 52nd minute and clamped down defensively and in the midfield, putting an end to a brilliant GL season.
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The Highlanders finished with a 14-4-1 record led by Jessica Jankowski's 17 goals.
Shore will head to the sectional final to face 17-1-1 Robbinsville.
(Thanks to GL dad Joe Stirpe for contributing to this article)
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