Bristol downs Red Devils in sectional final
Bristol downs Red Devils in sectional final
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BRISTOLVILLE -- Whoever scored first in Tuesday's Division V sectional final between Bristol and Lordstown was going to survive and advance to the next round of the tournament.
A scoreless first half of aggressive back-and-forth play set the tone, but the Panthers scored a pair to down Lordstown 2-0. The win gave Bristol a 3-0 sweep over the Red Devils in the season series.
"It was a big win for us. When Lordstown drew us, I knew this was the kind of game it would be," Panthers coach Cory Schrecengost said. "We were prepared for them, obviously, we played them twice. They were prepared for us. The last time we played them, it was 1-0. It was just a hard-fought game today, and we just came out with the victory."
Bristol’s attack was aggressive in the first half, but Lordstown seemed to have an answer for everything defensively.
That changed early in the second half when Panthers junior Logan Briggs got his team on the board.
Later on in the game, Ezra Shipman connected with the back of the net as well, extending the lead.
"At halftime it was 0-0, and I told the boys whoever’s gonna win is going to have one goal, two goals, or it’s gonna be a 2-1 game. We were dribbling too much. We needed to start shooting the ball," Schrecengost said. "I said we have to start shooting. We have to put the ball on goal. Follow your shots. Anything can happen, and that’s what Logan did. Then Ezra had a tremendous shot. Both on a tremendous shot, and then our defense just stayed strong."
Lordstown’s campaign ends at 8-6-2, the most wins since a 9-7-2 season in 2017. It was a special year that the team hopes to remember for years to come.
"Our kids played their hearts out in that first half, I tell you," Lordstown coach Eric Lloyd said. They gave everything they had for the entire game. I couldn’t ask them to do more than what they did tonight. Just a heroic effort on all their parts, playing through a lot of tough stuff out there on the field. I’m very very proud of them. I’m proud of the season they’ve had. These seniors, I’m just happy for all of them."
The Red Devils will graduate eight seniors, including goalkeeper Dylan Davis, Joey Rose, Connor Guesman and Ganon Force.
"This season was all about family for these kids, and you can tell. I mean, it was hard over there on the sidelines at the end with it being the last game," Lloyd said. "I’m sad to see them go, but I’m proud of all of them. They’re all going to move on and do great things with their lives. That’s what we’re here for. That’s what we want to see."
Bristol has plenty of time to rest before its next contest, which is scheduled for Oct. 29. They’ll take on the winner of fourth-seed Kidron Central Christian and 27th seed St. Thomas Aquinas, which is set for Saturday.