BEAUMONT, Texas - The McNeese women's soccer team saw its season come to an end Thursday with a 1-0 shutout at the hands of the No. 5 seed Nicholls in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament in Beaumont, Texas.

The Cowgirls (8-10-1, 6-5 SLC) completed one of the most successful seasons in recent years finishing the regular season in fourth place, its highest finish since 2008, and earning the No. 4 seed in the SLC Tournament. The Colonels (10-9, 5-6 SLC) will advance to Friday's semifinals to take on No. 1 seed Stephen F. Austin.

Just one year removed from a dismal season that included only one conference victory, the senior class of Amanda Denton, Tori Lasiter, Haley Lyons, Krista Steinbeiser, Cheyenne Ganley and Allison Northcutt helped turn the Cowgirls into a dangerous threat in the Southland Conference. Picked to finish next to last in the league, the Cowgirls made waves by scoring six conferences victories and earning the No. 4 seed in this year's tournament, a feat that had not been accomplished since the 2008 season.

"My first though is for our seniors and the impact they have had on our program," said McNeese head coach Scooter Savoie. "The build up they have made from last year to this year has been huge for our team. I told them at the beginning that our success was going to be based on our senior leadership and I think they did a really good job."
Junior forward Spencer Valdespino scored the game-winning goal in the 72^nd minute of the match as she connected on a shot from the top of the box which beat the goalkeeper inside the post.

"You can't fault the way that we competed," said Savoie. "Once we found our rhythm, we were able to settle down and create some chances for ourselves. We were doing a good job defensively but were not being dangerous enough. The second half I thought we came out and completed that task but Nicholls got a great look at the net and their best player took a chance and scored."

Steinbeiser and sophomore Savannah LaRicci each led the team with three shots in the match while 10 total Cowgirls attempted a shot on the night.

Despite the loss, junior goalkeeper Lauren Sestak made a season-high 10 saves.

McNeese finished the match with 15 total shots, including five shots on goal, and just two corner kicks, while Nicholls attempted 14 shots with 11 shots on goal and six corner kicks. The Cowgirls committed nine fouls and the Colonels committed five.