It was shootout time at Federal Way Memorial Field, even if the girls soccer match between Decatur and Southridge did not go that far.

Southridge of Kennewick jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the loser-out Class 3A state quarterfinal, then the Gators came roaring back to tie it before the Suns went ahead in the second half. Southridge then held up as Decatur pounded the Suns' goal unsuccessfully -- avoiding overtime and any possible real shootouts.

"It was a good game, but we didn't quite finish it off," said Decatur head coach Christy Overby. "Both teams played well and did a great job."

Southridge first jumped onto the scoreboard with 35 minutes, 25 seconds to play in the first half.

Suns' standout Heather Johnson bounded the ball past the goalie and into the right back corner.

Johnson struck again at 16:44 to go before halftime, this time hitting the left back corner.

It looked like Southridge was on its way to winning in a rout, but the Gators had other ideas.

Decatur's Ellie Franco scored with 6:21 left in the first half -- bouncing a long goal past the Suns' goalie.

The Gators struck again to tie it at 2-2 with only 2:07 left before halftime. Jennifer Kanesta crossed the ball over to Abby McFaul, who headed the ball in on a line into the back of the net.

Southridge snuck ahead again with 34:38 to go in the second half. Hannah Sanders fed the ball to Michelle Foster for the score.

Decatur came close in the final minutes, with two notable shots that hit the crossbar.

The first hit the football crossbar just over the goal net, and the second hit the soccer crossbar on top of the net and went out.

"I'm going to go to my grave seeing that one," said Decatur athletic director Kelly Kirk of the second shot and its hairbreadth miss.

The Gators finished with a 12-6-2 overall record in a season where they played at the 3A level, down from the 4A level they are used to. They are still in the South Puget Sound League, only against 3A-sized squads.

"We moved to a great league," said Overby. "It was a soccer league. It was different and good competition. I feel it's a good league for soccer."

Decatur will lose five seniors to graduation -- Kayla Lipston, Franco, Kanesta and Lauren Whybrew.

"We've got some strong returners," Overby said.

Meanwhile, the Gators can look back at a season that went deep into the postseason.

"The girls did an outstanding job," Overby said. "I'm real proud of them."