One of the most successful seasons in LaFayette Lady Ramblers soccer history came to an end this past Friday as third-ranked Decatur handed LaFayette a 7-0 defeat in the opening round of the Class AA/A state tournament.

We played hard the whole time," said head coach Joyce Brown. "Decatur was very good. We had a few chances, but we just couldn't score."

The team finished its season with a 15-3 overall record.

"I'm pleased with the season and pleased with the girls," Brown added. "We never let up and never quit and that's something the younger girls could see. We're losing some seniors in a few positions that will be hard to fill, but we have some girls coming up that we're expecting to do very well. They're excited about next year."

The LaFayette boys (7-8-1) also saw their season end at the hands of the Decatur Bulldogs by a 7-1 count.

Decatur led 3-0 at halftime, but LaFayette controlled the action in the first 20 minutes of the second half and cut the lead to 3-1 in the 45th minute. Cameron Brown scored off an assist from Adam Morgan.

But the Bulldogs would respond with four straight second-half goals to put the game away.

Head coach Andy Arnold said the season overall was positive.

"I'm pleased with the way we played," he said. "We have to get better at possessing the ball and we're going to start to work on that this summer."

Arnold added that he will miss his departing seniors, but has high hopes for the immediate future.

"We've got some rebuilding to do," he explained, "but the bricks and mortar are in place. Our freshman class is as skilled as any we've had here and they're large in number.