Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth
CHILLICOTHE — After hitting the post three times in a five-minute span in the first half, Chillicothe could’ve thought that it wasn’t going to be their night.
However, a trifecta of tallies in a span of two minutes and sixteen seconds to end the first half gave the Cavaliers all that they needed as they picked up an impressive 4-1 victory over Athens on Tuesday at Herrnstein Field.
As the teams were coming into the match with identical 12-3 records and possibly facing each other in Division III District play, it was imperative for someone to make a statement.
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
Within the first 90 seconds, it appeared that the statement was going to be made by the Bulldogs.
Athens came out with tons of energy, putting two shots on target in the early stages. But Chillicothe’s Landon Mautz was able to parry the shots away before a defensive clearance alleviated the pressure. This attack woke up the Cavaliers as Athens would only get one more shot off for the remaining 38:30 of the first half.
The Cavaliers (13-3) began to take over the match shortly after behind Carter Dunfee, Aidan Fischer and Isaac Herlihy, as they looked to expose the three-man defensive setup for the Bulldogs.
Shots from Dunfee and Fischer were pushed high by Athens’ senior goalkeeper Luke Rodgers. The best early chance for the Cavaliers came with Fischer in the box, but Rodgers was able to make a spectacular kick save to keep the game scoreless for the time being.
Things then got a little crazy over a five-minute span halfway through the half.
It started when Mason Brown played a perfect ball forward for Herlihy, who was just able to get a cleat on the ball to beat Rodgers. The ball then matriculated towards the goal before taking a left turn and connecting with the post. Moments later, Dunfee played a cross to the backside that appeared to be a sure goal, but that shot also clanged off the woodwork.
Finally, Dunfee decided to look to the near post to break the stalemate, but his shot was just deflected enough by Rodgers to hit the right post and go out of play.
While the Cavaliers’ attack was in a strange mix of dominating while also struggling, the backline of Brown, Alex Powers, Santos Garcia and Sam Byrd were outstanding in slowing the dynamic Bulldogs’ offense. Athens came into the match averaging over four goals per contest, but the Cavaliers quelled any opportunity that the Bulldogs may have put together.
Chillicothe was finally able to break through with 2:47 to play in the half as Herlihy sent in a beautiful corner kick towards the six-yard box, which Dunfee outworked the defense for and headed into the back of the net for his 30th goal of the season.
“It was amazing. A big thing was trying to get around that keeper,” Dunfee said. “He was so tall. He was a big guy. So we just tried to hit those spots, that bottom corner, upper corner, wherever we could hit it and as hard as we could. It was so nice to finally put one in, that feeling of, ‘We’re finally up.’ We finally had a lead.”
All it took was that first ball to finally go into the net, because the Cavaliers exploded to finish out the half after Dunfee’s brilliant finish.
PHOTOS: Images from Chillicothe’s win over Athens
At the 1:28 mark, Fischer was able to tickle the twine after another pass from Herlihy. The senior came streaking down the right side of the box, beating his defender to the ball and finishing to put the Cavs out to a 2-0 lead.
“It’s nice to have that feeling of, ‘Yeah, I put that ball in the right spot and we got a goal.’ I feel like that’s something I do well,” Herlihy said. “I can trust my teammates and I’ve been able to all season. It makes us such a dangerous team. It showed again tonight against a good Athens team.”
With time closing down in the first half, Chillicothe’s Tevaughn Beatty put an exclamation point on the burst for the Cavaliers as the junior midfielder scored from nearly 30 yards out with just 31 seconds remaining in the half.
After growing frustration with the posts for a little over 37 minutes, it just took 136 seconds for the Cavaliers to take complete control of the proceedings.
However, Athens didn’t come into the game at 12-3 without being able to play.
The Bulldogs made their halftime adjustments and were finally able to mount a sustained attack to begin the second half. With an attack led by Sully Pelot, Braeden Talley and Emmanuel Mends, the Bulldogs finally pushed the Cavaliers’ backline.
Ultimately, the attack paid off with Pelot getting fouled around 25 yards out from the goal. The senior midfielder took the direct kick and netted a gorgeous shot into the right side netting for his 32nd goal of the season with 33:58 to play, giving the Bulldogs life.
That life carried on throughout most of the half, before a sequence of events more or less closed the book on the evening’s game. The Bulldogs had a great look inside the box, but Mautz made another spectacular save in a momentum-stealing play. Shortly after, Chillicothe issued the dagger, with Powers finding Dunfee downfield, where the striker beat two defenders and the keeper to make it 4-1 Cavaliers with 23:23 to play.
The closing minutes were still highly competitive, even with the teams making several adjustments. Athens continued to attack, but Chillicothe freshman Henry Byrd appeared to come from nowhere to eliminate a threat inside the box and backup goalkeeper Hunter Conrad made a pair of nice saves to keep it at a 4-1 game at the final horn.
“It’s a big part of our team. We rely on the defense a lot,” Dunfee said. “It’s a good feeling to look back and see the boys that we’ve been playing with for the last four years and to just know that we can rely on them to not make many mistakes.”
Chillicothe outshot Athens 17-13 and also eventually hit the post five different times in the game. Mautz closed the game with five saves for the Cavaliers, with Conrad adding two of his own. Rodgers led Athens with six saves.
Both teams now look towards tournament play.
The Bulldogs (12-4) will host Hillsboro on Oct. 17 in a Division III district quarterfinal while Chillicothe plays that same evening against the winner of Sheridan and Fairfield Union.
Scoring Summary
1st Half
2:47 (Chillicothe) – Carter Dunfee (Isaac Herlihy)
1:28 (Chillicothe) – Aiden Fischer (Herlihy)
0:31 (Chillicothe) – Tevaughn Beatty
2nd Half
33:58 (Athens) – Sully Pelot
23:23 (Chillicothe) – Dunfee (Alex Powers)
SPONSORED BY SHANE MAIER — STATE FARM INSURANCE
