Central Ohio boys soccer, girls soccer and girls volleyball squads competed for regional championships on Saturday . Which teams earned state berths ? Here's a recap of the action.
Competing in its fifth regional final, Orange earned its first state tournament berth, beating previously undefeated Scioto 25-23, 25-17, 25-23 at Hilliard Darby. The Pioneers (25-3) will play Toledo St. Ursula in a Division I state semifinal at 2 p.m. Friday at Wright State. "You don't realize how hard it is to get to the state tournament and what a journey it is," said coach Katie Duy, whose team last reached a regional final in 2021. "We've had some great teams. We've had some great players come through Orange. ... We had a great game plan, they worked hard and they bought in."
Orange was led by senior Maddie Cugino, who had 15 kills, including the final one to complete the sweep in the third set. Izzy Scholvin had 29 assists and Lily Barron added 11 kills. "This was a good tribute to the seniors before us," Cugino said. "Since I was a freshman, we made it to regional finals three years and each time we've come so close, and I'm just glad to finally finish the job."
Scioto (27-1) also was looking for its first regional title. The Irish were led this season by senior middle hitter Alec Rothe , who will play at Florida. "It's unfortunate how it turned out, but I'm so proud of this team and will love them forever," Rothe said. "We've done some incredible things together this year, and the excitement and joy of those memories will be with me forever."
—Frank DiRenna
Hartley earned its first state tournament berth since 2021 and ninth overall, beating Marietta 25-12, 25-15, 25-4 in a Division II regional final at Heath. The Hawks (22-6) will play Gates Mills Gilmour Academy in a state semifinal at 6 p.m. Thursday at Wright State. "Marietta was 25-2," Hartley coach Mike Rahe said. "We watched film and we had a pretty good idea what they were going to do. Our girls just executed flawlessly. I couldn't ask for anything more from our kids."
Senior Kaylee Musick , a setter and right-side hitter, helped lead Hartley to the title. "We really weren't that surprised," Musick said of the sweep. "After the first two sets, we knew what we had to do, and we just went out and executed and played our best."
—Frank DiRenna
Shekinah Christian's season came to an end with a 25-20, 25-12, 25-18 loss to Shenandoah in a Division IV regional final at Pickerington North. The Flames finished 23-4. "We lost to a strong, disciplined Shenandoah team," coach Colleen Showalter said. "I'm very proud of my team. They've come through a very rough season, full of adversity. We were a different team from start to finish, and my players in the end pushed through determined to play together as a team. We have a lot of talent on our team and hopefully we'll be back next year hungry for more."
—Frank DiRenna
The Cardinals' postseason surge continued with their first Division I regional championship since 2016. After a scoreless first half, Zeke Shalawylo scored less than four minutes into the second and Charlie Saas added what appeared to be insurance with 27:04 left — but his score ultimately became the game-winner — as St. Charles edged New Albany at Big Walnut. "They are the toughest team we've faced (in terms of) grit and never-ending energy," Cardinals coach Chris Vonau said. "They were up for it and we weren't. We came out slow and that goal gave us some momentum. We worked through different formations and different personnel. I'm proud of the resilience and fortitude we've had."
Next up for St. Charles (11-7-2) is a state semifinal against Cincinnati Moeller (23-0) at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Wright State. The Crusaders have recorded 22 consecutive shutouts, including Saturday's 2-0 win over Cincinnati St. Xavier in another regional final. St. Charles lost to Moeller 2-0 on Sept. 30 but has won five of six games since. "We don't give up," Shalawylo said. "All through our struggles, we knew we could do big things. But we never doubted ourselves."
Teagan Lescody scored off a header with 9 seconds left for New Albany (16-5-2), the only area team to have reached the past four regional finals in any division. The Eagles were state runners-up in 2020 and 2022 and regional runners-up in 2021. "We might have overachieved, but we believe we should always be here," coach Johnny Ulry said. "We won't win them all, but St. Charles was the better team. They were physical, fast and had a great game plan. We had our opportunities for sure."
—Dave Purpura
Two first-half goals from Angelo Ginocchi and one from Caden Davis propelled Watterson (13-5-4) past Fairfield Union (18-3-1) in a Division II regional final at Bloom-Carroll. Davis got the Eagles rolling, scoring the first goal with 33:12 left in the first half. "Scoring early was big for us," Watterson coach Aaron Linden said. "We knew (the Falcons) could score goals, but the thing people didn't pay attention (to) about our team was that we've only given up one goal to a Division II team all year." Noah Thomas added a goal in the second half for the Eagles, who advanced to a state semifinal against Tipp City Tippecanoe at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Marysville.
Fairfield Union was playing in its first regional final, having reached that round by going 14-0-1 in its previous 15 games. The Falcons saw Watterson have success by using a familiar strategy. Fairfield Union also believes scoring early is key. "One of our goals is to score in the first 10 minutes because it is so devastating when it happens," Falcons coach Jarrod Redding said. "Unfortunately, our goalkeeper slipped and it wasn't even a shot and it goes in, and that was such a momentum swing. That goal early puts you on your heels and they have all the momentum, and we are playing that way the rest of the way, trying to play catch-up, and whenever you are playing catch-up, you have to change your tactics and change the way you do things. It makes it difficult, especially against a great team."
—Tom Wilson, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette
In a Division III regional final at Logan, Caleb Van Dop scored twice to lead Worthington Christian (17-2-3) past South Webster (16-4-2) and its first regional championship since 2013. Van Dop opened and closed the scoring, and Eli Funderburke, Baden Wood and Sammy Owusu-Sarfo added goals in between for the Warriors, who will face Waynesville (15-6-2) in a state semifinal at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Xenia. "We had a plan to come out from the very beginning and try to push into spaces and take control of the game early on," Worthington Christian coach Dan Roads said. "We wanted to put as much pressure on their back defensive line as we possibly could. We got a couple chances pretty early … and once we scored one, it put us into good position to go after a few more."
—Dave Purpura
Chloe Brecht scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner in overtime to lift Liberty past UA in a Division I regional final at Big Walnut. Brecht opened the scoring in the first half and then head-directed a ball past UA goalie Sally Patton with 10:21 left in the first 15-minute overtime. Avery Miller tied the game at 1 for UA (19-3-1) in the second half. The Patriots (18-2-1) will play defending state champion Cincinnati Seton in a state semifinal at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Wright State. Liberty will play in its third state tournament and first since 2017, when it lost to Loveland 2-1 in overtime in a semifinal.
—Frank DiRenna
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Central Ohio soccer, volleyball teams win OHSAA regional titles
