There was a defensive wall known as the Skyline back line between Tahoma and a return to the 4A girls soccer title match.

Skyline, which knocked off Kentwood in the quarterfinals on Nov. 12, beat Tahoma 2-0 in the semi-final on Nov. 18 en route to  the Spartans’ third girls soccer championship while denying the Bears a shot at their third crown.

Still, Tahoma bounced back and beat Gig Harbor in overtime to take third place.

“We played very well (against Skyline) and I’m very proud of my girls,” wrote Tahoma coach Jason Johnson in an email interview. “Both teams had chances, the difference was Skyline was able to find the net during their chances. I feel like it was a very hard fought game, one that we were proud of.”

Skyline scored both of its goals late in the game.

But, Tahoma was able to recover in the third-fourth place match the next afternoon.

“The girls really rallied,” Johnson wrote. “They were very tired, but, everyone wanted to send the seniors out with a win. The girls played with passion and pride and played extremely well. I’m amazed and proud of this team.”

Tahoma had to take Gig Harbor to overtime to take home the third place trophy with Kaysha Darcie booting in the winning goal on a penalty kick.

Until the loss to Skyline in the semis, Tahoma had not lost a match since it was dropped by Kentwood 1-0 on Oct. 27, the final regular season game in the South Puget Sound League North.

The Bears finished third in the division and ended the season with a 15-4-2 record overall.

Johnson said he was pleased with the team’s performance over the course of the season.

“It was a success,” he wrote. “We played through lots of adversity and I believe that we improved after every game. It was fun being a part of this team. They came together and worked toward a goal of winning state and came up just short. But, along the way were able to accomplish many wonderful things.”