Senior night didn’t go quite the way the Bradley-Bourbonnais girls soccer team was hoping it would Tuesday, ending in a 3-1 loss to Homewood-Flossmoor.

Just two regular-season games remain on the schedule for the Boilermakers (8-11-1, 0-6 SouthWest Suburban Conference) before heading to the Class 3A Minooka Regional starting May 19.

With her final season winding down, senior captain Nia Lawrence said she is taking a little time to appreciate the time she has left in her high school career, even in tough games like Tuesday’s.

“We were saying that this outcome wasn’t what we wanted it to be,” she said. “But still playing together as a team, it means a lot.”

The Boilermakers tried to put together a comeback after falling behind 3-0 in the first half, and almost did.

Sophomore Harper Tollefson got the team on the board with 31 seconds to go in the opening half and very nearly added another with five seconds to go, but a cross into the box from Lawrence drifted just out of Tollefson’s reach.

Tollefson came close again with 29 minutes to play in the second half, only to have her shot steered clear. Just two minutes later, Rylee Villegas had a free kick from just outside the box bang off the crossbar.

The Boilermaker defense kept the Vikings at bay in the second half, but a few more solid chances on the offensive end didn’t result in goals over the final minutes of the game.

The five-player senior class of Lawrence, Marti Grizzle, Lilly Argyelan, Kassidy Kelly and Jamisen Parker all took to their home field for the penultimate time Tuesday, with the home finale Thursday against Lincoln-Way Central being the last.

Grizzle said it’s been nice to keep playing with teammates she’s known for a long time.

“I think we’ve all grown so much,” she said. “I have pictures of us when we were 10 years old, 8 years old playing, so its very emotional knowing this is the last season I have with all these girls. I’m just so grateful I’m able to do something I love and play with people I love playing with.”

Under head coach Kristen Powell, this senior class helped the program go from a 3-17 record their freshman season to a 7-15-1 record the season after.

They upped the win total again as juniors, going 8-16, and matched that eight-win mark again this season, tied for the most since 2019.

Powell said she’s seen these seniors, whether they are four-year varsity players or not, grow in different ways as they now head toward graduation.

“These girls are so resilient,” she said. “I’m so proud of these girls, and I’m so grateful they have figured out how to be good teammates to each other and how to be respectful to themselves. ...

“The girls on this team, soccer is important, but it’s not the only thing. It’s just such a pleasure to see them at school, outside of school, on the pitch. They’re awesome.”

The Boilermakers have a tough test ahead against Lincoln-Way Central (13-1-1) before traveling to play Andrew (8-6-1) to wrap the regular season.

They will open regional play against host Minooka in a rematch of the season opener, which the Boilermakers dropped 6-1, and then walk at graduation two days later.

Grizzle said she wants to do everything she can to make these final few weeks memorable ones.

“I’m definitely going to take everything I can while I only have a little bit of time,” she said. “I feel like I’ve been taking a lot of things for granted, and these last few games I really want to soak it in, have fun with all the girls and have our last hurrah together.”

For Lawrence, she said she is just hoping to keep enjoying the things that have made the last four years special for her.

“I’ve really appreciated the bond we’ve had as girls and as teammates, because that can be really complicated sometimes,” she said. “I feel like everyone here is really caring about one another.

“Each and every girl I’ve ever played with helped shape me in little ways, and I’m grateful for that.”