EAST PROVIDENCE — East Providence High School’s surprisingly strong 2022 boys’ soccer season came a crushing completion over the last week with a pair of losses.

The first, in their regular season finale to rival LaSalle, was a bit easier for the Townies to overcome.

The second, in the preliminary round of the Division I state championship tournament to Classical Tuesday, Nov. 1, was not.

The sides needed 80 minutes of regulation, 10 minutes of overtime and all five rounds of penalty kicks before the 11th-seeded Purple, the last team to qualify for the league playoffs, upset sixth-seeded East Providence by a 2-1 score. Classical won from the spot, 4-3.

“PK’s are always a difficult situation and tough way to end what was a surprisingly great run by this young group,” said EPHS head coach Tony Vieira.

East Providence wound up with a 6-5-3 record and with 24 points in the regular season, 6-6-3 overall in league games for the fall.

The Purple improved to 4-7-4 with the win. East Providence actually clinched its berth two weeks ago with a 2-1 win over Classical in Providence.

The top five overall seeds — North Kingstown (15-0-0), LaSalle, South Kingstown (9-3-3, 30 points), Bishop Hendricken (7-2-5, 29 points), and Portsmouth (7-2-5, 26) — earned byes into the quarterfinals. Classical advances to meet the third-seeded Rebels.

The other preliminary round games had seventh-seeded Cumberland 5-7-2 20 facing 10th-seeded Moses Brown (4-5-5, 17) and eighth-seeded Tolman (5-5-4, 19) meeting ninth-seeded Central Falls (5-7-2, 17).

East Providence and the Purple spent the better part of the opening 30 minutes of their playoff game at Townie Stadium trading possession between the 18-yard boxes, neither side sustaining much pressure.

E.P.’s Ricardo Lima put the first shot on frame of the night in the 24th minutes. The kick took a deflection before Classical keeper Tyler Lee made the save.

The Purple were the more threatening side in the final quarter hour of the half, including a shot from distance in the 34th minute that forced EPHS keeper Nick Bento to punch the ball over the bar.

The shot led to a corner and the game’s first goal. The Townies defense couldn’t clear the ball and Bento couldn’t hang on to an initial shot, allowing Thomas Breen to punch in a goal for the visitors. Classical would take the 1-0 to halftime.

“I thought we started out flat, but still managed to create a few good chances,” said Vieira. “We gave up a bad goal after a deep free kick and dug ourselves a little hole, but I knew we had enough going for us that we would get one back.”

The second half was pretty much nondescript for the better part of 20 minutes before the Townies struck for the tying goal. And it was quite a strike.

After the Townies were awarded a free kick following a Classical foul, senior Andrew Jackson, unknowingly playing his final high school game, ripped a shot from some 40 yards out that Lee couldn’t get to. The blast knotted the score at one where it remained for the rest of regulation.

“We got the equalizer and as expected momentum turn heavily in our favor and we got a few more good looks, but failed to capitalize,” Vieira said.

Both keepers were forced to make one clutch save in the two five minute overtime periods. Lee’s came in the first extra session on an EPHS breakaway. Bento’s came in the second on another leaping effort.

Classical began PKs with a goal, which was matched by Jackson. The keepers then both made saves, Lee thwarting Dorian DaSilva on E.P.’s second attempt.

The Purple retook the lead then Lima tied it at two. The same happened during the fourth round. Classical scored then Sam Jackson leveled for the Townies.

The end came in the fifth round when the Purple scored on Bento, but E.P.’s senior keeper next missed badly from the spot, sailing his attempt over everything behind the south goal.