ARLINGTON -- It was during March Madness about two years ago when, at a UVM alumni function in Washington, D.C., I spent the better part of an hour trying to explain to a not-that-close classmate why sports are so important to so many people.

I don't think I got very far in that hour.

"But I still don't get it," was more or less how she wrapped up the conversation. My points about some sort of drama playing out in every game apparently missed wide right. Zero progress.

I wish I could have shown her the photo with this story (at right):

In it, Arlington's Rayleen Sherman, normally a hard-nosed striker, is on the verge of tears, overcome by emotion moments after serving up the game-tying assist to Molly Elwell.

Right after I snapped it Thursday afternoon, reviewing it and the build-up sequence on my camera's display, I realized that the enormity of the moment for Sherman was captured entirely in her reaction to the goal against Proctor. I shivered. All at once, the senior's expression fell somewhere between pure exhaustion, winning the Powerball and losing a loved one.

A year ago last week, on that field, against that team, near that same goal, the then-junior suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first of three showdowns between the top two teams in Division IV.

Sherman was forced to watch the next two clashes -- including the state final, a 3-2 Proctor win in overtime -- from the sideline. She spent the next 10 months rehabbing that knee to get

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back to that point on Thursday, a goal away from handing Proctor their first loss in two years.

Knowing that story, watching the two squads battle through the previous 74 minutes, seeing Sherman fight through two defenders and beat the goalie with the pass to tie the game I just don't get it.

That is not just sport, that's drama.

And, this time of year, with regular seasons everywhere coming to a close, there's fresh drama just about every day on just about every field.

It started Monday night in Manchester -- and Schuylerville -- with streaks on the line.

* Under the lights at Applejack Field, the Burr and Burton Academy boys soccer team kept its perfect season alive in the rain against Brattleboro. Up 1-0 but down to 10 men after a sending-off late in the first half, the Bulldogs refused to budge.

BBA proceeded to beat the Colonels 2-1 after halftime for a 3-1 win, the 17th in a row dating back to last year. Even a man down, they didn't allow more than one goal for the 30th time in 31 games.

* Meanwhile, in New York, the Hoosick Falls girls soccer team saw a physical Schuylerville team somehow repel the Panthers' typical barrage to earn the upset, 1-0. The loss was Hoosick's first in New York since last September.

* Tuesday, Mount Anthony's sixth-place runner, sophomore Jazmine Hollister, ended up deciding the Marble Valley League championship for the Patriots. Unable to run all summer after suffering a stress fracture in her ankle, she charged across Willow Park without a clue as to how important her race would be.

* Wednesday, it was BBA sophomore Daisy Sullivan somehow weaving her way 100 yards through the Mill River defense, disbelief building with every step, to set up the opening goal. A run to make Barcelona star Leo Messi proud, it sparked a 4-0 win that the Bulldogs hope clinch a home playoff game.

Thankfully, with playoffs around the corner, it's not about to stop anytime soon.