St. John's, Northview secure boys soccer titles
10/10/2018
Northview High School golfer Lexi Knight has qualified for the Division I state tournament as an individual.
THE BLADE/JEREMY WADSWORTH
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As the 2018 soccer regular season draws to a close on Saturday, most area league championships have been decided, with a few others yet to be settled.
St. John’s Jesuit (13-0-2, 7-0-0), Ohio’s sixth-ranked Division I boys team, secured an outright Three Rivers Athletic Conference championship on Tuesday with a 6-0 shutout of visiting Clay (8-7-0, 5-2-0).
The Titans got two goals from Dane Kalman, plus one each from Andrew Allen, Eli Shope, Abdi Faqi, and Brian Rutkowski.
St. John’s outscored its seven TRAC foes 58-4 in the conference games.
In the Northern Lakes League, Northview (12-1-3, 7-0-0), Ohio’s ninth-ranked D-I squad, wrapped up an outright boys title Tuesday with a 4-1 win at Perrysburg. Runner-up Anthony Wayne (10-4-1, 6-1-0) was denied a title by virtue of its 5-0 loss to Northview earlier in league play. The champion Wildcats outscored their seven NLL opponents 38-4. Alek West (11 goals, 8 assists) has been Northview’s top offensive producer.
The Woodmore boys (13-2-0, 9-0-0) have already secured an outright Northern Buckeye Conference championship and will close conference action Thursday at Otsego. The Wildcats have outscored their NBC opposition 57-16 thus far, led by Hayden Heidelbrink (20 goals, 25 assists) and Alec Garcia (27 goals, 8 assists).
The NBC girls title has been clinched by Eastwood (14-1-0, 9-0-0), Ohio’s sixth-ranked Division III team. The Eagles have outscored their NBC foes 54-9 entering Thursday’s conference finale versus Rossford.
Ottawa Hills swept the Toledo Area Athletic Conference boys and girls titles.
The Green Bear boys (11-2-0, 6-0-0), Ohio’s top-ranked Division III team and the 2017 state runner-up, have been paced offensively by seniors Kevin Hileman (25 goals, 7 assists) and Dylan Schreder (19 goals, 5 assists).
The Ottawa Hills girls are 10-4-0 overall and 6-0-0 in the TAAC.
In the Northwest Ohio Athletic League, Archbold (15-1-0, 5-0-0), ranked No. 7 in D-III, won its fourth straight league title and fifth in six years by topping foes 110-10 in 16 games, including 37-1 in league games.
The Blue Streaks’ only loss came Aug. 27 by a 2-0 count against Ottawa Hills. Archbold has had three players reach the 20-goal mark — Josh Kidder (24), Andrew Hogrefe (21), and Elijah Zimmerman (20).
Liberty Center (12-0-1, 6-0-0) won the NWOAL girls championship, outscoring its opposition 49-6 overall and 26-2 in league games. The Tigers’ pivotal win came in their final NWOAL contest, a 1-0 triumph over runner-up Archbold (10-1-4, 4-1-0).
GOLF: The boys and girls golf seasons are winding down with state tournament competition in and around Columbus the next two weekends.
The Division II boys state tourney is set for Friday and Saturday at the Ohio State University Scarlet Course, where Archbold is the only area team competing.
The Blue Streaks placed second in the Oct. 4 district tourney at Red Hawk Run in Findlay, posting a four-player score of 344 led by seniors Kreighton Sims (82) and Mitch Grosjean (85).
Ottawa Hills qualified for the Division III boys state tournament by placing second with a 334 in the Oct. 4 district event at Stone Ridge in Bowling Green. The Green Bears, who were two shots behind district team champion Minster, were paced by senior Nick Durfee (78) and junior Owen Smith (80).
Ottawa Hills will compete in the D-III state tourney Friday and Saturday at North Star Golf Club in Sunbury.
No area girls teams qualified for the D-II state tournament this Friday and Saturday, but four players will be competing as individuals at the OSU Gray Course — Lakota sophomore Kyleigh Dull, who placed second individually at the district event at Sycamore Springs with a 73, Ottawa Hills senior Caroline Dayton (third, 73), Gibsonburg sophomore Sydney Leyerle (75), and Liberty Center senior Olivia Zacharias (78).
The Division I girls district tournament was played at Stone Ridge on Tuesday, and runner-up Perrysburg (352) was the only area team to qualify for state. The Yellow Jackets were led by sophomore Ana Marie Jimenez (78), who placed third individually, and senior Franny Sberna (87). The Jackets ended 11 strokes behind district champion Ashland.
Qualifying as individuals were Bowling Green junior Macy Hanus, who won medalist honors with a 72, and Northview senior Lexi Knight, who placed fourth with a 79.
Finishing just one stroke behind Perrysburg was St. Ursula, which failed to advance to the D-I state tournament for the first time since 2010. The Arrows had reached state 18 times since 1996, when they won a state team title.
State competition will be held Oct. 19-20 at the OSU Gray Course.
The Division I boys district tournament is set for Thursday at Red Hawk Run. Qualifying out of last week’s sectionals were the teams from St. John’s, Perrysburg, Anthony Wayne, Findlay, and Northview.
The D-I state tournament is set for Oct. 19-20 at the OSU Scarlet Course.
Contact Steve Junga at sjunga@theblade.com, 419-724-6461, or on Twitter @JungaBlade.