Girls’ soccer fell to Framingham 2-0 under the lights at home Thursday, Oct. 21, despite a strong defensive performance. 

“We play to win and we weren’t able to do that today,” said senior Lilly Ranalli, a captain with seniors Fiona Flint and Talie Membrino. “So it’s definitely a little bit frustrating but we’ve got two more games in the regular season and we’re going to pick ourselves up and come back even harder.” 

In the first half, Framingham quickly pressured North, but the defense was able to hold up. North gained control of the ball at times, though struggled to break through. The first half ended scoreless, with both defenses holding strong.

During the start of the second half, North struggled and turned the ball over multiple times. After a hesitant goal kick from North was intercepted, Framingham scored, pulling ahead 1-0 and breaking the defensive slug fest.

Minutes later, a North corner kick bounced into Framingham’s net, but the referees disallowed the goal, claiming that instead of hitting the crossbar the ball hit off the football goal post before trickling in.

“Moments like that can definitely shift a game,” said Brian Leighton, the head coach. “It’s certainly not an excuse, but it’s something we have to deal with mentally and try to fight for that next one.” 

The overturned goal seemed to take the air out of North’s defense, allowing Framinghman to secure another goal. North was down 0-2.

Framingham dominated the rest of the game, with the ball primarily in North’s end, however, the Tigers’ defense prevented any more goals. 

Despite the loss, the team still found positives from the game, “It’s so fun to be under the lights. There’s great energy and a lot of team support,” said Ranalli. “It was clear that everyone was giving it their all.” 

The Tigers, 3-8-4, will play against Weymouth Tuesday, Oct. 26 at home.