×

Flashes hold off Mathews, earn spot in district championship

CHAMPION — One is enough.

The Champion boys soccer team advanced to the Division III Warren District title game after outlasting the visiting Mathews Mustangs, 1-0, Tuesday evening. The Flashes (10-7-1) are looking for their first district championship since 2004.

“It’s been a while since Champion has been in the district final,” Flashes coach Shawn Varley said. “That was one of the goals we had as a program. We wanted to move one step further than we did last year. Last year, we lost in the district semifinal. It’ll be nice to get back to the district final for the first time in a few years.”

Champion will face top-seeded Crestwood in the district title game Saturday at 4 p.m. at Girard.

The Flashes moved on thanks to some stingy defense and an early goal from midfielder Aaron Ellsworth. Ten minutes into the game Ellsworth scored after a corner kick found its way into a scrum of players. Ellsworth’s hustle play was the only time the ball found the back of the net for either squad.

Mathews (9-8-1) made it tough on Champion as the Mustangs controlled field position for the majority of the first half. After a huge throw-in from sophomore captain Vincent Greenwood, Mathews just missed tying the score.

Then, junior Timothy Steele nearly knotted the score on a leaping attempt in front of the goal, but Champion senior goalie Austin Spackman made a good stop to turn it away.

“That was a really tough game,” Mathews coach George Callow said. “We created a lot of opportunities. When you’re six yards away, you’ve got to convert those in a game like this. Give credit to the Champion defense.

“I’m super proud of our kids. They stayed all the way until the end. They were creating shots up to the last minute.”

The Mustangs certainly were as Spackman had another nice save with five minutes remaining in regulation. Two minutes later, the game nearly headed to overtime when the Mustangs pushed the ball toward the goal. The ball got away from Spackman after he deflected another shot, and Mathews had an open goal for a brief moment.

Senior Trevor Orr and junior Luke Jordan locked down the defense for Champion one more time and got the ball out of there.

“Our defense had a lot to handle,” Varley said. “Mathews almost played a ’90s style of soccer with crossing the ball non-stop. It was impressive. The defense was able to adjust to that. Mathews had a lot of speed on the outside, but the defense did a good job of adjusting in the second half.”

Ellsworth nearly added an insurance goal for Champion, but Mathews freshman goalie Tommy Kuhn was up to task and made a great stop for the Mustangs.

Mathews has a co-ed roster and the girls are major contributors. Sophomores Izabella Greenwood and Jillian McEvoy, along with junior Kylie Kuhn, all start. Senior Ryverz Durman also plays big minutes.

“We have a bunch of freshman and sophomores,” Callow said. “I feel bad for the seniors. It’s a tough way to go out, but we’ve got good things coming up in Mathews. Best of luck to Champion.”

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
     

Starting at $4.85/week.

Subscribe Today