There was certainly a feeling of heartbreak following last week’s PIAA Class 2A playoff game for the Salisbury girls soccer team, particularly in the way the Lady Falcons’ last game had to end. No team wants a game to be decided on a penalty kick in overtime.

And when that game comes with a chance at advancing to the state quarterfinals on the line, it makes the loss much more difficult to swallow.

Despite falling to Montoursville last Tuesday in the first round of the PIAA tournament, there will be plenty of smiles in regards to what the Falcons accomplished in 2016.

“They were a very good team,” said Salisbury head coach Rick Babyak of Mountoursville. “You expect nothing less when you get to this level. But we were right there with them. We are also a very good team. We did not play with fear, and it may have been he best we played this season.

“It is very unfortunate that a referee’s call toward the end of the second overtime helped decide the game. Still, all-in-all, I can only be proud of how well our girls played.”

For this senior class, 2016 ended with opportunities at winning two titles in the Colonial League and District 11 Class 2A championships. The Lady Falcons (16-6-3) did come up short on that goal, but they qualified for the state tournament for the first time in program history after defeating Dunmore 3-1 in a state play-in game.

“To be a part of the team who had the longest run for Salisbury girls soccer is an unbelievable feeling,” said Elon University-bound senior Caylin Meikrantz, responsible for a team-high 21 goals and 10 assists this year. “And to just know that we deserved to go that far with all the hard work we put in is great.”

Just as the Falcons have done throughout the season, Salisbury didn’t let an early Montoursville goal hold them back. Meikrantz dished a pass to Rylee Donaldson for the game-tying goal just beyond the midway point of the first half a couple minutes later.

That score would hold until late in the second overtime when Montoursville’s Gillian Mitchell scored on a penalty kick to end Salisbury’s historic season.

“The state game was one of the best we have played, and in the back of our minds we didn’t want the season to end,” Meikrantz said. “Everyone did their best on the field, and with an unfortunate call you can’t do anything about it.”

“When you go against an undefeated team from a different district two hours away, and play in their own backyard, you’re never sure what to expect,” Babyak said. “But from the kick-off you could see it was going to be a great game. The game went back and forth through regulation.”

Setting the bar high started with a well-rounded senior class anchored by those upperclassman and the team’s defense. Caitlin Hoeing and Holly Bruns graduate as two of Salisbury’s top goal-scorers in 2016, combining for 17 goals and 12 assists, along with Meikrantz (the program’s all-time leader in assists with 48 and sixth all-time in goals scored with 43).

Defensively, Kyra Bruns anchored the goalie position with an impressive 10 shutouts and 172 saves. The defense as a whole never allowed more than two goals in any game this season.

“This group of girls has gone places no other Salisbury girls team has before them,” Babyak said. “This team has set the bar high for future teams.”

Their best season in program history didn’t come without some adversity. Injuries had to be overcome from multiple positions. And when one player missed time due to unfortunate circumstances, the next in line was there ready to fill those shoes.

“No doubt a big part of this season’s story was how this team saw its way through injuries,” Babyak said. “We lost Rylee Donaldson for a month. We had two other top scorers out for multiple games. We could have really dropped off the table, but instead we fought our way though.”

“We always joked around during preseason how we were going to sates,” Meikrantz said. “As we started to win most of our regular season games, it started to become a reality, and it changed from a ‘what if’ to a ‘when.’”