The dream of an undefeated season by the Long County boys’ soccer team came to an end on Thursday as the Blue Tide lost to Benedictine Military School (13-5).

Playing in Savannah, the Cadets (14-1), were able to squeak out a 2-0 win to secure a tie with the Tide atop the Region 2-AA standings. Both Long County and Benedictine finished the regular season with identical 11-1 records in the region.
“It was a hard-fought game,” Blue Tide head coach Mike Austin said. “I feel we didn’t play our game. We play well when we play loose and relaxed.”

Austin said that while he was disappointed with the outcome of the game, the loss will help his team next week in the playoffs.
“There is no doubt this will help us as we prepare for the upcoming playoffs,” he said. “One thing wins can’t prepare you for is how will we react to adversity. We hope to have a better focus this next week, and the pressure of staying perfect is also off us now.”
Thursday night wasn’t a good night for the Lady Tide, either, as they fell 7-1 to their nemesis, St. Vincent’s Academy. With the loss, the Lady

Tide’s overall record dropped to 12-3, and their region mark fell to 10-2. The Saints ended their regular season undefeated in the region with a 12-0 mark and an impressive 14-3 overall record.
According to this week’s Eurosportscoreboard.com AA rankings, the Blue Tide are ranked No. 4 in the state and the Lady Tide are at No. 8.

The playoffs begin this week, with the Long County boys hosting a playoff game at 5 p.m. Thursday and the girls hosting at 5 p.m. Friday. The opponents for the Long County teams were not immediately known.
Coaches’ comments on the Lady Tide game were requested but not available in time for this story.