HARROGATE, Tenn. -- Heartbreak made its way to the LMU Soccer Complex on Tuesday afternoon as the Lady Railsplitters' (9-4-3) season was brought to an abrupt close in the quarterfinals of the South Atlantic Conference Championship. Fourth-seeded Lincoln Memorial and fifth-seeded Catawba (11-5-3) played to a 1-1 stalemate through the end of regulation and two 10-minute overtime periods before the Indians ultimately advanced via a 5-4 win in the decisive penalty kick shootout.
 
The Lady Railsplitters, who were ranked seventh in the most recent NCAA Division II Southeast Region ranking, will likely be left out of postseason contention in the wake of Tuesday's loss, effectively ending the season at 9-4-3 overall. Catawba, meanwhile, advances to the semifinals of the SAC Championship to play top-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne Friday in Rock Hill, S.C.
 
Catawba was staked to a 1-0 lead  in the 27th minute when Kate Weisner, newly entered into the contest, corralled a deflected cross in the box and powered her 12th goal of the season into the left-hand corner of the net. That Lady Railsplitters went into the halftime break trailing 1-0 despite mounting an 11-5 shot advantage over the visitor's from Salisbury, N.C. though 45 minutes of action. Lincoln Memorial also amassed a 5-1 edge on shots on goal, but Catawba keeper Bethany Davis turned away all five of those attempts.
 
The Lady Railsplitters needed nearly every bit of the final 45 minutes of regulation to record the equalizer, which finally came in the 89th minute. After a Catawba foul was whistled just outside of the box, senior Fernanda Miaci (Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil) blasted a free kick into the right-hand corner of the net, miraculously tying the match in the final moments.
 
Lincoln Memorial had an opportunity to put the game away in the first overtime as junior forward Olivia Thompson (Melbourne, Fla.) struck a scissor kick that was wrapped up by Davis. The Indians mounted a scoring chance in the second overtime on a shot by Kiersten Peck, but LMU keeper Kayla Stephens (Keller, Texas) deflected that attempt to keep the tie intact.
 
In the decisive penalty kick shootout, the Lady Railsplitters and Indians went goal-for-goal through the first four attempts as Krista Holka (Harrison Township, Mich.), Kadie Soall (Tecumseh, Ontario), Thompson and Maddy Nagy (Rockledge, Fla.)  matched Catawba's first four shooters. Allison Parker finished off the Indians' perfect 5-for-5 showing on the final PK try, while Miaci's attempt to top it was stonewalled by Davis to propel Catawba to the victory.
 
The Lady Railsplitters fell despite recording a 22-11 shot edge with a 7-3 shots on goal advantage. Miaci accounted for seven shots and three shots on goal, while senior Nicole McKinney (Ooltewah, Tenn.) posted five shots with one landing on target in her final match in the Blue and Gray. Nagy pitched in four tries in the loss.
 
Tuesday's match was an inverse of the 2013 SAC Championship quarterfinal, when the Lady Railsplitters knocked off Catawba 2-1 to advance to the semifinals of the league tournament for the first time since 2007.