Chippewa, Hiland and Norwayne girls soccer teams advance to regional tournament play

As the OHSAA playoffs continue, a trio of area girls soccer teams advanced to regionals in Hiland, Norwayne and Chippewa. In a fun twist for area fans, the Bobcats and Hawks both advanced to play each other, and the Chipps opened with Columbia.

NORWAYNE

Making it to its sixth regionals, Norwayne rallied to beat Canton Central Catholic in a Div. V district final Oct. 25. Leading the way was sophomore Courtney Cline with a pair of goals.

“It feels great; I haven’t experienced this before,” said Cline, who is making her first regional appearance. “Not going to lie, I kind of was just hoping for the best. I ran up and kicked it. I thought the goalie had it, but it went in, and I was like, ‘Let’s go on my first goal.’”

On the second one, Cline was taken down from behind but still finished to put the ‘Cats in front.

“I didn’t feel the girl behind me,” she said. “I just watched it, waiting and hoping. After halftime, we regrouped. Ee’re kind of a second-half team as it is, and we put it together.”

Playing a big role was the backline and goalkeeper Morgan Hamby, with a big effort to repel the Crusaders. After an early first-half goal, the Bobcats defense pitched a shutout and never really gave CCC a good look at the frame.

“Our backline has been really good all year,” said Norwayne coach Jason Zimmerly.”Because of the players we have, we’re able to go three in the back and bring one of them forward. They just communicate really well, are really poised under pressure, they read angles well and they’ve just been really good this year.”

HILAND

Clinching their fifth regional, the Hawks powered through Steubenville Catholic Central 3-0 as they outscored opponents 12-0 heading into regionals. Ally Mullet, Chanelle Kellogg and Italee Mullet each scored for Hiland in the win Oct. 25.

That set up the regional semifinal showdown with the Bobcats and the teams' second meeting, as the Hawks won the regular-season battle 2-1. On Oct. 28, it was all Hiland as it rolled past Norwayne 4-1 to advance to the regional finals Nov. 1 against Fairbanks.

Pacing the Hawks offensively was Italee Mullet with a hat trick, and Ally Mullet buried the game’s final score. Goalkeeper Kaitlyn Klink finished with seven saves.

“I thought the girls played great and stuck to the game plan,” said Hawks coach Conner Lee. “Norwayne put a ton of pressure on us, and they stayed composed and played through it. We finished our chances really well.”

CHIPPEWA

There simply isn’t a team in the area with bigger expectations and hopes than the Chipps. In the same breath, there probably isn’t a better area program to have such dreams, as Chippewa consistently year in and year out is the area’s standard bearer and has been since 2004.

The Chipps outscored opponents 22-1 to get to regionals and meet the Raiders. In a clash at Wooster High School, Chippewa left little to the imagination as it steamrolled Columbia 8-0 to earn a mercy-rule win with 14:44 left in regulation.

“We’ve been working really hard on Lady Chipp soccer,” said Chipps coach Ruth Coney. “It’s just playing 100% and then some, and they did what we wanted to do. We’ve been working on this all season. Our offense has gotten better and better, our chemistry is amazing and it’s so strong. It’s really nice.

“I am so proud of this team and of every player. Offense, defense and the midfield, they are all amazing. Just their touches, their ability to get the ball to each other, unselfish play, looking to get each of our weapons involved and all of that makes it so tough for other teams to defend.”

After a pretty mundane first half that saw the Chipps score via an own goal, they cranked it up in the second half. Defender Myra Lewis kick-started matters with a sniper shot from about 40 yards out that seemed to only open up the floodgates.

“I’ve done that a few times this season so far,” said Lewis. “I aim for right above the goal keeper's hands, and I just hope for the best.”

This one found its mark, and from there, the offense finished off the Raiders.

“We realized that we needed to kick it into gear since we were only up by one,” said Lewis. “We also knew it was cold, and we wanted to go home, so we wanted to mercy them. Honestly, we just wanted to have fun and go out there and get the win.”

From Lewis' score, just three minutes into the second half, Chippewa buried six more goals within the next 23 minutes. Delaney Marshall scored a hat trick while Cally West, Lily Davis and Makayla Berlin each scored a goal.

“I love watching our offense get those combinations over the top,” said Lewis. “I love seeing Delaney (Marshall) race down there and score. It’s fun to see.”

BOYS TEAMS

Central Christian and Hiland were the area’s lone teams to advance back to regionals, as the area’s top two teams continue to be among the area’s standard bearers.

The Comets rolled past Hillsdale, Waynedale and Chippewa by a combined 14-0 to get to their 17th regional, and the Hawks earned their 22nd ticket to the dance.