“I think we’ve improved since then and it motivated us,” said Shawnee senior Lily Cain.
Shawnee hasn’t lost since. The Braves beat Tecumseh 5-0 on Monday to take sole possession of first-place in the Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail Division.
It was the first time in four years the Braves had beaten the rival Arrows, who’ve won three straight Kenton Trail Division championships. A year ago, Tecumseh beat Shawnee 1-0 in Springfield with a goal in the final minute.
“I don’t think we could’ve done it without our team,” said Braves senior Megan Kelly. “We worked really hard in the summer and all of us put it together on the field. It’s team chemistry. We all work together and have fun. We all enjoy playing together.”
The Braves won the previous two championships in 2016 and 2017. The senior class wants nothing more than to bring the title back to Springfield. They also hope to advance to the D-II district tournament, Cain said.
“We have the talent, we just have to put it together,” she said.
Braves sophomore Lillian Weller leads the team with 25 points (eight goals, nine assists), while returning CBC Kenton Trail Player of the Year and D-II second team All-Ohio senior Raegan Howdyshell is second with 23 points (10 goals, three assists). Shawnee goalkeeper Jaelyn Lytle also ranks among the leaders in the CBC with 35 saves and two shutouts.
“Our class has been hungry to win again,” Howdyshell said. “We’ve gotten closer as a team and I think that brought us together for the win today.”
In the CBC, each match counts towards the league title, including crossover matches against the Mad River Division. The Braves know they’ve got to keep playing hard with several tough matchups moving forward.
“We’ve got a lot of work ahead, but this is a big step,” said Braves coach Mike Gannon. “The conference, like usual, has some strong teams in it and you can’t take any days off. If you do, it’s going to be a rough game.”
The Braves travel to West Liberty-Salem at 5:30 p.m. today.
Girls Soccer
Greenon is 4-0 and have outscored its opponents 49-3. The Knights had 14 different players score goals in a 20-0 victory over Yellow Springs on Monday.
Knights senior Hallie Gilley leads the Ohio Heritage Conference with 31 points (13 goals, five assists).
Boys Soccer
Emmanuel Chrisitian Academy junior Thor Page scored the game-winner with 20 seconds remaining as the Lions beat host Tri-County North 5-4 on Tuesday.
Lions junior Seth Schetter scored three goals, while Christian Hamstra added the other goal and Gavin Ford had two assists in the victory for Emmanuel Christian (2-3)
Volleyball
Northeastern took sole possession of first-place in the OHC North Division on Monday, beating West Liberty-Salem in five sets 25-22, 21-25, 21-25, 29-27, 15-11. The Jets (9-1, 6-0) have won six straight since falling to Urbana on Aug. 28. … Southeastern senior Taylor Lewis had 12 aces and senior Libby Allen had nine kills as the Trojans beat Triad 25-9, 25-12, 25-9 to stay in a first-place tie with Cedarville in the OHC South Division. The Trojans host North Division leader Northeastern at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.
Cross Country
The defending Division III state champion West Liberty-Salem girls cross country team is ranked third in the Ohio Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches Week 2 state poll, earning one first-place vote.
The West Liberty-Salem boys program is ranked fifth in D-II, while Cedarville is ranked 18th in D-III.
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