Lady Indians win back-to-back district championships
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
JACKSON — For two straight seasons, the Hillsboro Lady Indians are district champions, again winning the coveted title by a single goal in a win-or-go-home situation, this year defeating Fairfield-Union, 1-0 Saturday in Jackson.
The Division II SE District final, which had a game time temperature of 35 degrees, saw just one goal roll into the back of the net, and luckily for the No. 1 seeded Lady Indians, the goal went in their favor.
HHS improves to 15-2-2 overall.
[[In-content Ad]]Hillsboro's leading scorer Trista Rhodes put the ball into the back of the net with 23:21 left on the first-half clock with the keeper of Fairfield-Union up in the box. The goal was set up off a corner kick by Mallory Sluss, as HHS was able to catch the No. 6 seeded Lady Falcons off guard a bit.
"It is a great feeling to win a second district title," HHS coach Leslie Molen said. "This team has talent, and I'm glad they came, worked hard. It wasn't our best effort, but it was a good enough effort on this day."
Molen spoke about the goal.
"The referee kept hustling us to kick (HHS was tying a shoe), and we caught the opponent off guard."
From there, the game was all defense, including a big save by HHS keeper Rachel Sexton at the 17:58 mark, with the senior diving to the left side of the goal. HHS had another defensive stop by Hope Tira at the 13:43 mark, and Sexton quickly followed that stop with a two-handed standing stop in front of the goal with 13:13 on the first-half clock.
At the start of the second half, the Lady Indians almost added a second goal, but it sailed wide right just under two minutes into the half.
The defense of HHS continued to work on their eventual shutout with Taylor Davis taking the ball away from the Fairfield-Union offense.
On offense, the offense of HHS continued to control possession of the ball in Lady Falcon territory including passes by Kaylynn Bell to Madison Colliver, as the team controlled possession for the first 15 minutes of the second half. Also putting pressure on the Lady Falcons were Kaylee Achor, Ashley Purtee and Cheyney Myers.
Again, Davis made another big defensive play for the Lady Indians with 25:05 left in regulation, and HHS had another near goal opportunity with 15 minutes left on the scoreboard.
The Lady Falcons had their most pressure from the 12-10 minute mark of the second half, but Sexton, again, made a save to keep the lead for HHS with 10:50 on the clock. Later in the half, Jaylyn Yochum stopped pressure by the Fairfield-Union offense.
"Jaylyn had a heck of a game," Molen said. "She was up against their best player on the left side and she controlled her.
"Taylor (Davis) and Hope (Tira) and the entire defense played well."
From the final three minutes until the buzzer sounded, the Lady Indians continued to fend off the pressure from Fairfield-Union, including stops by Davis and Yochum.
The Lady Indians will now play in the Division II Regional semifinals, in a match that will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. at Upper Arlington High School. HHS will face Millersburg West Holmes, who defeated Cambridge No. 1 seed Minerva, 5-0 in their district final.
"If we can put together a decent game, it won't be like last year," Molen said of the upcoming match. "This team is a hardworking team, and on any given day, anyone can step up. They surprise me every day. They come to work and to play hard."
Molen spoke about about the HHS program and their season thus far.
"We have a great senior class leading us," she said. "The juniors are work hard as well, and I'm happy that a few of the younger kids are along for the ride.
"Again, this is great, and it all goes back to the kids in the program."
The Division II SE District final, which had a game time temperature of 35 degrees, saw just one goal roll into the back of the net, and luckily for the No. 1 seeded Lady Indians, the goal went in their favor.
HHS improves to 15-2-2 overall.
[[In-content Ad]]Hillsboro's leading scorer Trista Rhodes put the ball into the back of the net with 23:21 left on the first-half clock with the keeper of Fairfield-Union up in the box. The goal was set up off a corner kick by Mallory Sluss, as HHS was able to catch the No. 6 seeded Lady Falcons off guard a bit.
"It is a great feeling to win a second district title," HHS coach Leslie Molen said. "This team has talent, and I'm glad they came, worked hard. It wasn't our best effort, but it was a good enough effort on this day."
Molen spoke about the goal.
"The referee kept hustling us to kick (HHS was tying a shoe), and we caught the opponent off guard."
From there, the game was all defense, including a big save by HHS keeper Rachel Sexton at the 17:58 mark, with the senior diving to the left side of the goal. HHS had another defensive stop by Hope Tira at the 13:43 mark, and Sexton quickly followed that stop with a two-handed standing stop in front of the goal with 13:13 on the first-half clock.
At the start of the second half, the Lady Indians almost added a second goal, but it sailed wide right just under two minutes into the half.
The defense of HHS continued to work on their eventual shutout with Taylor Davis taking the ball away from the Fairfield-Union offense.
On offense, the offense of HHS continued to control possession of the ball in Lady Falcon territory including passes by Kaylynn Bell to Madison Colliver, as the team controlled possession for the first 15 minutes of the second half. Also putting pressure on the Lady Falcons were Kaylee Achor, Ashley Purtee and Cheyney Myers.
Again, Davis made another big defensive play for the Lady Indians with 25:05 left in regulation, and HHS had another near goal opportunity with 15 minutes left on the scoreboard.
The Lady Falcons had their most pressure from the 12-10 minute mark of the second half, but Sexton, again, made a save to keep the lead for HHS with 10:50 on the clock. Later in the half, Jaylyn Yochum stopped pressure by the Fairfield-Union offense.
"Jaylyn had a heck of a game," Molen said. "She was up against their best player on the left side and she controlled her.
"Taylor (Davis) and Hope (Tira) and the entire defense played well."
From the final three minutes until the buzzer sounded, the Lady Indians continued to fend off the pressure from Fairfield-Union, including stops by Davis and Yochum.
The Lady Indians will now play in the Division II Regional semifinals, in a match that will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 29 at 7 p.m. at Upper Arlington High School. HHS will face Millersburg West Holmes, who defeated Cambridge No. 1 seed Minerva, 5-0 in their district final.
"If we can put together a decent game, it won't be like last year," Molen said of the upcoming match. "This team is a hardworking team, and on any given day, anyone can step up. They surprise me every day. They come to work and to play hard."
Molen spoke about about the HHS program and their season thus far.
"We have a great senior class leading us," she said. "The juniors are work hard as well, and I'm happy that a few of the younger kids are along for the ride.
"Again, this is great, and it all goes back to the kids in the program."