John Bruce, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE – After playing a challenging schedule, the Chillicothe Cavaliers are not intimidated by any opponent …
… Even one that comes into a game unbeaten.
CREDIT: Marissa Spradlin/SOSA
Entering Thursday’s contest, the Athens Bulldogs featured a record of 12-0-3, but that record didn’t cause the Cavaliers to blink.
That zero became a one as the Cavaliers (12-3-1) dominated every fact of the game, scoring a 3-0 victory over the Bulldogs.
“We stepped to the ball very quickly and won almost every 50-50 ball, whether it was headers or in the box,” Chillicothe’s Mason Siberell said. “We do have to work on clear the ball out quickly when there’s chances to do so, but other than that, it was a really solid game.”
After dominating the opening 28 minutes to no avail, Chillicothe sophomore Isaac Herlihy followed up on a loose ball in the Athens’ box and scored to put the Cavaliers ahead 1-0, which is a lead they would hold going into hafltime.
“It was exciting to put one in, and I knew from that moment that my energy and game would be up,” Herlihy said. “
By using solid midfield play and an outstanding defense, the Cavaliers owned a 11-0 shot advantage at the break.
“Playing DeSales back on Tuesday [in a 5-0 loss], I think really helped us out for this one’” Siberell said. “They were extremely quick and their first touches were insane. We were stepping to the ball much quicker this time, which we weren’t against DeSales and I think that motivated us to play better.”
However, the Bulldogs were unbeaten for a reason and came out firing to start the second half.
Behind an attack featuring Brady and Austin Jaunarajs, Owen Beckley, and Luke Scanlan, the Bulldogs put intense pressure on Chillicothe’s backline. After not taking a shot for the entire first half, the Bulldogs took six shots in the first twenty minutes of the second half, although only two were on target.
The Chillicothe backline of sophomore Mason Brown and seniors Siberell, Steven Nguyen and Schylar Srey more than stepped up to the challenge. If they were pressured by the attack, one could not tell, as the experienced Cavaliers parried away attacks or deflected shots.
Following the opening twenty minutes, the Cavalier midfield began to take the game back over.
Herlihy, Deacon Crawford and Carter Dunfee maintained possessions while sending through-balls for Gabe Ramsey and Kaiden Koch. By putting more pressure on the outstanding Bulldog defense, the Cavaliers began to open the pitch up even more.
It took most of the second half, but thanks to a foul in the Athens’ box, Chillicothe was able to expand its lead.
Herlihy was fouled in the box with 7:42 left in the game and he stepped up to the penalty spot, calmly netted the shot to give the Cavaliers a 2-0 lead.
“The second one, I was just feeling it,” Herilhy said. “Everything felt good and it was a good goal.”
That lead expanded as time ran out when Koch took a pass from Dunfee inside the box and slotted it into the far netting to close the game with a win.
“Athens played a very high line and that threw us offsides a lot,” Koch said. “We just needed more time to find those open passes, and we had some great opportunities. I just wasn’t able to put any away until the final minutes, but it finally happened.”
The Bulldogs earned the No. 1 seed in the Southeast District in Division II and host the winner of Sheridan and Circleville on Monday.
The Cavaliers begin Division I tournament action on Tuesday when they host Grove City at 7 p.m. The two teams tied 2-2 in their regular season match on Sept. 17.
“We’ve played a really tough schedule to prepare us for the tournament,” Herlihy said. “We know the talent they have, but we also know the type of energy we have to bring.”
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