By Jim Fenton
EWING, N.J. -- The Bridgewater State University women's soccer season came to an end Saturday in the opening round of the NCAA Division III tournament.
The Bears were defeated by 10th-ranked The College of New Jersey, 2-0, at Lions Stadium in their first trip to the NCAAs since 2013.
BSU (12-5-3) trailed the unbeaten Lions by just a goal until they added an insurance score with less than 20 minutes to play.
Senior Victoria D'Imperio (Bordertown, N.J.) scored both goals for TCNJ (18-0-2), one in each half, to give her 15 on the season.
The Bears were unable to generate many scoring chances against the Lions, one of the best defensive teams in the nation.
BSU had just one shot on goal by junior Olivia Robarge (Pepperell, Mass.) with 20:38 gone in the first half.
The Lions held a 15-1 edge in shots on goal and a 27-3 advantage in overall shots.
BSU junior goalkeeper Logan Levesque (Bristol, R.I.) made a season-high 13 saves while TCNJ freshman Ellen Williams (Baltimore, Md.) had the one save.
The Lions have recorded 13 shutouts this season. They had seven in a row before winning the New Jersey Athletic Conference title game over Montclair State, 4-1.
D'Imperio gave TCNJ a 1-0 lead 27:01 into the game, scoring from senior Greta Bush (Princeton, N.J.) off a corner kick.
The Bears kept the deficit at one goal until D'Imperio scored again at 73:70 with senior Rachel Burkhard (Clark, N.J.) assisting.
BSU was outshot, 5-1, in the first half when TCNJ had 10 overall shots to three by the Bears.
It was the third time BSU failed to score a goal this season, the other two coming in 0-0 ties with Wheaton on Sept. 12 and UMass Boston on Oct. 30.
The last time the Bears lost by shutout was Oct. 10, 2023 to Tufts, 4-0.
BSU won both the regular-season and tournament championships in the MASCAC for the first time ever this fall.
The Bears were in the NCAAs for the fourth time after qualifying in 2002, 2003 and 2013.
BSU won at least 10 games three straight seasons, the first time that has happened since 1991-93.
The Bears' roster includes seniors Tori Gemellaro (Wilmington, Mass.), Alexis Vanderzeyde (Middleboro, Mass.), Mia Chrisafideis (Marlborough, Mass.), Cheyenne Nelson (East Bridgewater, Mass.), Tristen Gomes (Middleboro, Mass.), Bailey Brown (Plymouth, Mass.), Sydney Dewhurst (East Bridgewater, Mass.) and Sydney Sousa (Dartmouth, Mass.) along with graduate student Emily McCormack (East Bridgewater, Mass.).
BSU's leading goal scorer this season was Robarge with 14 while she tied Dewhurst for the lead in points (32). Dewhurst finished with a team-best 10 assists.
The Lions, who reached the 2021 title round, will play on Sunday at 1 p.m. against either 18th-ranked Johns Hopkins or Southern Maine.