In one of the most exciting conference finals ever, the Northeastern men’s soccer team came up one goal short in the penalty kick round of the 2003 America East championship game and lost to the No. 2 seeded Binghamton Bearcats after ending regulation, 1-1.

Alas, a men’s soccer season on the verge of disappointment that melted into a Cinderella playoff run to defend its America East title was cut short Saturday, before the final chapter could be written.

In a game that can be described only as a defensive battle, it was the Bearcats (11-2-6, 4-1-4 America East) who got on the board first. After a scoreless first half, the Bearcats finally got one by NU goalie Sergio Saccoccio on a redirection off an NU defender’s foot at the 58:22 mark to give them a 1-0 lead.

“We played well the whole game,” said coach Ed Matz. “Their only goal was redirected, and it just goes to show you that you need a little luck sometimes.”

The goal marked the first time Saccoccio had been beaten since the tournament began, but the Huskies, who clawed their way back into the finals after stumbling into the playoffs with the fifth seed, would not be beaten yet, as Tom Heimreid somehow found the back of the net after senior Atha Kirkopoulos booted a corner kick in front, knotting the game at 1-1 with just under 10 minutes remaining in regulation.

The next two overtime periods resulted in a stalemate, as both teams failed to score in the sudden death overtime rounds, and the game moved to a shootout. In the end, it was the Huskies who came up short, missing one more shot than their opponents, and failing to win their second AE championship in as many years.

“It’s really tough because we didn’t really get beat,” Parrish said. “They just beat us in PK’s. Either way, both teams played great, and they deserve the win.”

Although they came up short, the Huskies (10-7-4) can be proud of where they ended up.

“We lost, but if we sit back and look at the overall picture, we accomplished a lot,” Parrish said. “We learned that if we focus, we can win on the road against anybody on any day.”