In the first 20 minutes of the second half, the Albert Lea High School boys’ soccer team played the best it has all season.

It wasn’t quite enough.

The Tigers’ best chances failed to reach the net and they lost 1-0 to Rochester Mayo at Hammer Field Tuesday night.

&uot;Nobody likes to lose, but we played so well,&uot; said Tigers coach Jim Haun. &uot;A lot of good things happened tonight. If we can play more minutes like the first 20 of the second half, we’ll have a lot of success.&uot;

Goalie Ethan Berg played a great game, according to Haun.

&uot;He held us in the game with some tremendous saves, in the first half particularly,&uot; said Haun.

The Spartans outshot the Tigers 16-11, but shots were 6-6 in the second half.

Defenders Joe Squires, Ryan Lowe, Jake Levisen and Andy Stapleton also had a strong game.

The Albert Lea junior varsity lost 5-3 and the C-squad fell 4-1.

The Tigers, 5-6 in the Big Nine and 7-6 overall, host arch-rival Austin Thursday for parents night.