The Emery Spartans suffered a 2-0 season ending loss to American Leadership Academy in the first round of the 2A championship tournament Wednesday afternoon in Spanish Fork.

After finishing fourth the 2A central region the Spartans grabbed the final playoff spot awarded to the division and battled strong against the unbeaten No. 1 seed from the south. Wednesday’s win marked the 13 straight for ALA, while ending a two game winning streak for the Spartans.

ALA held a slim 1-0 lead at the end of the first half off of a goal from Joseph Valle. Valle added one more goal in the second and Taylor Negus recorded the shutout at goalie.

Wednesday’s season ending loss sets Emery’s final overall record at 10-6 for the 2016 season. The team finished safely ahead of Grand for the final playoff spot and just one game in the loss column behind Gunnison for third.

2016 marked a huge turn around for Emery as the team recorded five more wins after finishing 5-10 last season. It also marks the second consecutive year the team has qualified for playoff action.