Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
JACKSON — After a one-year break, the Gallia Academy Blue Devils are back in the district championship game for the fourth time in five seasons.
The Blue Devils (17-2) struck early and often on Wednesday night at Jackson’s Alumni Stadium, running away from Logan Elm (7-10) on their way to a dominant 8-0 victory in a Division IV district semifinal.
Beckett Camden got the scoring started at the 36:08 mark of the first half with a right-footed strike past a diving keeper. Just under 10 minutes later, junior defender Logen Drummond won a scrum in the box and added to the lead with a header from inside the six-yard box.
CREDIT: Renee Nemeth/SOSA
Play began to even out over the next few minutes, but Logan Elm was unable to make a serious push at GA’s goal. The defense, led by Drummond, Cade Mock, Owen Nourse, and Luke Sisson, along with standout goalie Kalin Schneider, completely shutdown the Braves’ offense, allowing a single shot on the evening, which Schneider made a strong save on.
“He’s athletic, he’s quick on his feet and he can catch the ball,” Drummond said of Schneider. “He’s just a wonderful keeper to have. He makes everything easy. Sometimes, you can have some slip-ups and he’s back there to stop it and make the save.”
The Blue Devils built on their early dominance with a pair of quick strike goals, the first from freshman Tyson Hersman, which was assisted by Camden. Hersman returned the favor to Camden less than two minutes later to make it 4-0 with 12:02 to play in the opening half.
PHOTOS: Images from Gallia Academy’s win over Logan Elm
Camden finished off his first half hat trick with just 46 seconds to play with a header off of a strong throw-in from Cade Mock to make it 5-0 at the break.
“It’s basically just a corner. It’s a great value to have,” Camden said. “You’d like to have him in the box because he’s so tall. But his throw-ins are just phenomenal. He puts it on the spot that you want it. It’s always there every time.You just have to get a head on it and put it in the back of the net.”
With the OHSAA’s new mercy rule in the second half of soccer, the Blue Devils came out looking to get an early end to their night. Drummond scored his second goal of the evening at the 38:56 mark, before Camden notched his fourth tally of the contest with 32:47 to play, leading to the Blue Devils’ bench being cleared.
“It’s pretty exciting, especially with the teammates I have,” Camden said. “They’re so supportive. Our fans are, too. This program is just great to be a part of. We’re always having fun. These last two years, I haven’t really been able to play up top much. So getting that opportunity to score, I didn’t think I would score as many [as I have]. It’s just special.”
GA closed out the contest with 24:25 to play as junior Branson Eddy scored a close-range goal to make it 8-0 and finish off the night, sending the Blue Devils to a district final.
Gallia will take on Unioto at 8 p.m., Saturday at Jackson. The Blue Devils will look to win the school’s second district championship in three seasons and also the second in school history.
“This win is pretty special,” Camden said. “When I was a freshman, we won the district. Then last year, we kind of had a down year. We just made it to the district semis. So to go to the district [final] again, it’s just pretty cool. Especially being a top seed in the district, it’s fun.”
Scoring Summary
1st Half
36:08 – GA – Beckett Camden
26:19 – GA – Logen Drummond
13:48 – GA – Tyson Hersman (assisted by Camden)
12:02 – GA – Camden (Hersman)
0:46 – GA – Camden (Cade Mock)
2nd Half
38:56 – GA – Drummond
32:47 – GA – Camden
24:25 – GA – Branson Eddy
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