The SCHS varsity girls soccer team lost to Branham High School Wednesday night, ending their season in the first round of the CCS Division 1 playoffs.

Thirty-one minutes into the game, SCHS scored with a shot that was caught by Branham’s goalie, but was ruled a goal because it passed the goal line.

While this put SCHS in the lead for almost the entire game, Branham scored with four minutes left on the clock, tying the game 1-1.

Heading into overtime, each team had two periods of 10 minutes to score. After a quick goal by Branham, senior and co-captain Shaelan Murison, who plays forward, tied the game with a free kick, ending the first period of overtime 2-2.

Driving fans off the edge of their seats, the game went into the second period of overtime, where Branham eventually scored and ended the nail-biting game by 3-2.

“I thought the season went well, even though we had a couple of rough games,” senior outside midfielder Jessica Brasil said. “At the end of this game, I feel like we got frustrated and so Branham was able to get ahead.”

Although the Bruins varsity girls made it to the second round of CCS last year, they fell short this season. Nonetheless, this marks the fourth year in a row that SCHS has qualified for the CCS playoffs in girls soccer.

“The last game was intense, but we gave it everything we had,” said senior and co-captain Catherine Terry, who plays defense. “It’s just hard to believe that it was the last time playing on our field with my team.”

With Santa Clara’s defeat Wednesday, Branham High School will be heading into the second round of playoffs, facing Fremont on Saturday, Feb. 27.