Local Sports

Beavers are getting their kicks

CALCUTTA -- Beaver Local’s girls soccer team feels like it’s buckling in for another long tournament run after some late season adversity arrived.

On Wednesday in a Div. III sectional opener, top-seeded Beaver Local’s attacking duo of junior Peyton Dunn and sophomore Leah Stewart provided all the firepower the winners needed in a 5-0 win over No. 9 seed New Philadelphia.

Dunn scored four goals to up her season total to an Ohio-best 51, while Stewart added a goal and four assists to push the Beavers to a 13-5 record and a district semifinal date with No. 3 seed Steubenville on Monday at Beaver Local.

New Philadelphia (2-13-3) came into the contest having scored five goals all season and the Beavers barely had to worry about the Quaker scoring threat the whole game.

“They weren’t really getting the ball up the field,” Beaver Local senior midfielder Riley Springer said. “They weren’t taking shots. They were just booting it up the field and trying to run onto it, but we got to it first.”

Stewart moved her season assist total to 38 -- also currently tops in Ohio across all divisions.

“I think they mainly played kick ball, but we settled the ball down pretty well,” Stewart said. “We played to our teammates and made through-ball passes. We just kept our heads up.”

Dunn’s first two goals came at the 27:58 and 26:03 marks of the first half. It took about nine minutes into the game for the Beavers to have a shot on goal.

The Quakers’ stronger defensive play was a welcome sight in an early round tournament game for the Beavers.

“I think we do need the challenge as a team because something we have been working on as a team is passing,” Stewart said. “When we have a lot of pressure on us it gives us opportunities to pass around people.”

Dunn added her third at the 23:52 mark of the second half before Stewart scored with 10:08 left in the game. Dunn added another for good measure with 7:59 left on a free kick from 25 yards out.

“She was a great superstar today,” Stewart said about Dunn. “She’s going far.”

Beaver Local has had to adjust course over the three weeks of the season since starting central defender Faith Brokaw broke her leg in the 12-0 win over Ursuline on Sept. 29. After that win, the Beavers, a Div. IV state semifinalist last season, lost three straight and were shutout twice.

“We’ve had to make some adjustments and it took us a game or two for us to figure out what we needed to do,” Beaver Local coach Liz Connor said.

Sophomore Jansen Ours was serving as the center back against New Philadelphia. She had been playing more of an attacking role on the wing until switching to defense.

“We’re doing well with those adjustments now,” Connor said.

Another thing that will be different for Beaver Local in the tournament this season it the switch to a bigger division. Beaver Local is the 13th smallest school by enrollment based on the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s competitive balance formula.

“We will see more competition a little bit sooner in the rounds,” Connor said.

In two previous meetings with Big Red at Beaver Local, the Beavers won 3-1 on Sept. 15 and 4-3 in an OVAC semifinal contest on Sept. 21. In the OVAC semifinal the Beavers had to come back from two goals down to win.

“We anticipate it will be a physical battle,” Connor said. “I think they will run through a wall for their coach.”

At the top of the bracket, No. 5 seed Zanesville will travel to No. 2 seed Dresden Trim-Valley on Monday. The district final is set for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday at a neutral site to be determined.

MATCH NOTES

• Dunn’s 51 goals matched her Beaver Local season-best set as a freshman. She now has 147 for her career.