CEDAR SPRINGS – The Fruitport soccer team had not lost a game all season, so if and when that first defeat came, it was going to be painful.

It finally came on Saturday, in the most gut-wrenching way imaginable.

The Trojans and Forest Hills Northern played to a 1-1 tie through regulation and two overtime periods in a Division 2 regional championship game at Cedar Springs High School.

That took the game to an overtime shootout, with each team sending out five players to go one-on-one with the opposing goalie.

The shootout was tied 2-2 headed into the fifth and final round, then Fruitport missed its final shot.

That set the stage for FHN junior Beau Lincoln, who calmly buried his shot, ending the game, sending his team to the state semifinals, and putting a sudden stop to the Trojans’ amazing season.

Fruitport, which has been ranked No. 1 in the state for weeks, finished with a sparkling 20-1-1 record, a conference championship and a district championship, but the very sudden loss in the nail-biter on Saturday was still a huge gut punch for the Trojans.

It came exactly one year to the day that Fruitport was eliminated in the regional finals last year by one goal. That game was also at Cedar Springs.

“The margins are so thin,” said Fruitport head coach Dan Hazekamp. “The teams are so evenly matched at this point. You have opportunities here and there. I thought we generated good opportunities, and we were right there. Props to Forest Hills Northern, but it’s just a hard way to go out.”

The loss sent seven Trojan seniors out with a record of 38-4-4 over the last two seasons.

“They mean the world to me,” Hazekamp said about the senior group. “They’re a bunch of unselfish kids. They’re not entitled and are very coachable. They do things the right way and have worked their butts off. They’ve done so many special things.

“I’m proud of them, and more importantly they’re really just great kids. I’m prouder of them for that than anything else.”

The intensity of the big game – which was also a state quarterfinal – was felt from the beginning. Each team had two shots on goal in the first half but nobody was able to find the back of the net.

Forest Hills Northern broke the deadlock early in the second half when Lincoln shot a loose ball in the middle of the Fruitport box into the net.

The Trojans struck right back about two minutes later when they got a penalty kick inside the FHN box.

Senior Isaac VanderMolen blasted a strong kick to the lower right corner of the goal to tie the game at 1-1 with 35:16 remaining.

The teams traded chances for the rest of the second half, with Forest Hills Northern getting the best opportunity when a shot hit the top of the Trojan goal with 17 minutes remaining.

Regulation finally ended in a 1-1 tie with Forest Hills Northern having a 7-5 edge in shots on goal.

In the first overtime, each team had one shot on goal but nothing went in.

In the second overtime, Fruitport had what appeared to be an open-net chance to score, but was denied by a diving save by FHN goalkeeper Luka Darling.

Both teams missed their first two attempts in the OT shootout before the drama played itself out.

Jorge Burgos-Yack was the third shooter for Fruitport and confidently ripped a shot into the net. Then FHN’s Zachary Schafer netted his shot, knotting the shootout score at 1-1.

Fruitport senior Sam Krueger was was successful on his kick in the fourth round, then was matched by FHN’s Liam Tilly, tying the score at 2-2.

The Trojans missed their fifth and final attempt, however, which set up Lincoln for the game winner.

“I couldn’t be more proud,” Coach Hazekamp said. “We battled a really good team that has a good chance to win a state championship. We were right there. It hurts to lose, but it’s more so a hurt knowing it’s over.

“I won’t get to see these guys every day, and it was a really special group. It was going to be sad, whether it ended today, Wednesday or next Saturday. It’s hard to go out like that, but I just love my guys.”