PITTSBURGH — There's no crying in football.

Well, maybe some.

Moments before the Pittsburgh Passion took the field for the National Women's Football Association championship game Saturday againstColumbus, defensive lineman Melissa Yeck and linebacker Beth Amato, who are the best of friends, talked about their career, their season and their future without football.

"She got really tearful," said Yeck, a five-year veteran and team captain. "I was starting to lose it, so I said, 'I have to get away from you. I can't be crying. We still have to hit people.'"

Yeck was suiting up for the last time. So was Amato and several other charter members of the Passion organization that had spent six years and five grueling seasons trying to get to this point.

And now, in 60 minutes, it was going to be over, win or lose.

"Maybe that helped us," Yeck said. "We weren't nervous about the championship game. We were thinking about how this was going to be the last time we would go out and hit people."

The Passion, behind quarterback Lisa Horton and a stifling defense, rolled to a 32-0 win over the Comets at White's Creek HighSchool in Nashville, Tenn.

That caused plenty more tears after the game, too.

"There was a bunch of mixed emotions," said Yeck, a native of Cranberry Township. "It was exciting and sad at the same time. It was very surreal. All I was thinking was 'Did we really do this?' We had so many ups and downs. We had such a talented team, but we never made the playoffs until now."

Pittsburgh's season erased all the disappointments from years of near misses.

The Passion finished 12-0, outscored their opponents 580-81 and beat archrival Cleveland three times.

Yeck wasn't sure how good the Passion was until the team started 5-0 after beatingCleveland 40-18 on the road.

"That's when it switched on for me that we were pretty good," Yeck said. "Cleveland was definitely our toughest competition.

The championship game was a foregone conclusion by halftime after the Passion built a 26-0 lead.

Quarterback Lisa Horton was 13-of-17, ran for a score and was named offensive MVP.

"It was a very emotional day," said Passion owner and starting safety Teresa Conn. "This is one of those real special teams. They all played for someone outside themselves."

Now, the sights are set on the future — one that will be without some of the cornerstones of the team.

Conn, who could fill a medical journal with the accounts of her many broken bones, sprained muscles and football-related surgeries, is retiring.

So is Yeck, Amato, running back Torina Henley, linebacker Kellie Byers and offensive lineman Carol Dennison, to name a few.

"They were real staples," Conn said. "But we have a huge talent pool. It's time for the young, strong athletes we have to get their chance."

That bodes well for Grove City native Lyndsi Hughes, who was the team's starting tailback two seasons ago before moving to fullback this season.

Hughes figures to reclaim the tailback role next season. The Slippery Rock University assistant volleyball coach had a huge impact in the playoffs for the Passion.

"Lyndsi is an amazing runner," Conn said. "Her and Torina were great back there."

Now, the vets can ride off into the sunset.

"We have some amazing people on this team," Conn said. "We had some of the craziest and goofiest things happen to us. I knew this year we had found the missing pieces. I'm just so happy."