Back-to-Back District Champions: Fairfield plays complete game to defeat Eastern

(Editor's Note: Game photos will be posted on Friday evening)

HILLSBORO — Emotions were in abundance Thursday night for the No. 5 seeded Fairfield Lady Lions, because once the final buzzer sounded and the dust had settled, they were the ones wearing the gold medals and hoisting the a Division V SE District championship trophy following a 2-1 win over conference rival and No. 1 seeded Eastern. 

Fairfield has not only won consecutive district championships, but the program has won three of the past four district championships, with the senior class being a part of three of those district final wins. 

With the win, the Lady Lions also have defeated or tied the Lady Warriors in seven consecutive games dating back to the 2023 season. Since Fairfield had a postseason loss to EHS in ’22, they have outscored the Lady Warriors, 11-2 in that span, including three wins in tournament play for a record of 6-0-1 vs. Eastern since ’23. 

The win is also the second consecutive year the Lady Lions have ended the season of Eastern in the tournament, defeating EHS last season. As for their ’26 regular-season match, Fairfield and Eastern played to a scoreless tie. 

“It is back-to-back years district champs, and that was one of our goals coming into this, and the job is not done for that goal, which is to go further than we did last year,” Fairfield head coach Jacob Alexander said. “It was an up-and-down regular season, but we try to be at our best once the tournament comes around, and I think some of the girls showed that tonight, especially with Viv [Henninger] getting that game-winner and Meri [Jackson] making some amazing saves at the end.”

Alexander also spoke about the differences in facing Eastern in the regular season to the district finals match, and what he and his team learned from that first meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 2.

“Confidence … If we can keep them 0-0, we missed our chances, but knowing we can go against that quality of a team is big. We went back and looked at it, and some of it was our own mistakes, so what we cleaned up in the midfield — when you are starting three sophomores at mid, you are going to have some growing pains — but they have grown greatly over this year,” Alexander said. 

Now for the main event on Thursday evening played at Hillsboro High School where the two teams battled hard, played a physical match for 80 minutes, and there were more than a few intense moments for each side, with Eastern having four yellow cards handed out to them by the officials. 

The first tense moment of the match came with pressure from the offense by the Lady Warriors of Brown County with their first shot of the match sailing wide right, while they controlled possession of the ball for nearly the first 14 minutes of play. 

Fairfield eventually took their turn applying the pressure, and they nearly scored the first goal of the match with around 5:30 left in the first half, as Eastern keeper junior Chloe Hauck slipped on the turf, but jumped back up to make a timely save off a kick by the Lady Lions. 

As stated, Fairfield were the ones applying pressure, and they finally cashed in with the first goal of the match with 1:28 left in the first half, when senior Emerson Zink kicked the ball into the back of the net as she was in front of the keeper for the 1-0 lead. 

“It was really exciting knowing we were able to get up and get ahead, and we were just ready to play and stay strong,” Zink said. “After scoring the goal, I just saw my teammates, and everyone was just so excited. We were just ready to go from there.” 

Coach Alexander spoke about how important that goal was for the Lady Lions. 

“That was big,” he said. “Emerson getting that goal was big. I talked to her at halftime, and I told her I was glad you got one, but you could have had two. She definitely stepped up big there and put one away and got us some momentum going into the second half.” 

That was the score once halftime arrived, but the break in the action allowed the two teams to rest, then the action really amped up in the final 40 minutes of action. 

Though the two teams increased their overall level of play and intensity to start the second half, no goals were scored early on, and one of those reasons was the play of Fairfield senior keeper Meri Jackson. 

Jackson made a stop at the corner of the goal with 31:06 left in the match, then around the 29:57 point of the second half, she once again made a stop in nearly the exact same spot. 

“We came out knowing we needed the win and to come out strong, not be flat-footed and be ready to get the win,” Jackson said. “Being a part of this is truly an amazing feeling.”

That defense allowed the offense to get their momentum going, and it was senior Vivian Henninger who made maybe the most difficult shot of the match as she raced downfield, battled through at least three defenders, and then — at an angle — was able to kick the ball past the keeper and into the left corner of the net for a goal and a 2-0 Fairfield lead with 24:50 left on the clock. 

“This game was a huge win, and we needed this,” Henninger said. “Coming out, we told each other we were going to give 110-percent the whole game. Obviously, during the regular season we tied Eastern 0-0, and so this was our redemption round. We were coming, and we wanted to win.”

The senior Henninger also spoke about her goal scored.

“I know that whenever I have a lane open, I am taking it, and I know I am fast enough to beat some of them,” she said. “I definitely can feel some of the pressure on my back when I am dribbling, but I always tell myself, ‘one extra touch,’ or ‘no extra touch,’ and this time it was an extra touch, and my left foot is my dominant foot, so I just try to hit the corner.”

When it comes to Henninger, Alexander said to “never count out” the senior. 

“Never count Vivian out when it comes to scoring goals,” Alexander said. “She’s approaching 100 (currently at 97 career goals), but the more we keep playing, the more chances she gets, and that’s our goal right now.”

Though EHS had a second yellow card in the second half, that didn’t stop the momentum they gained, because with 18:39 on the clock it was Kaitlyn Pfeffer scoring their lone goal for a 2-1 score, cutting the Fairfield lead in half.

Eastern continued to apply the pressure with their fast-paced offense, but the defense of Fairfield was playing just as intense, and it was a play by senior Landry Teeters which made a huge difference. 

The quick play saw Teeters intercept a pass by Eastern as they were looking to set up a shot attempt while in transition, with around 17:30 left in the match. That play stopped a potential goal attempt by EHS, leaving Fairfield ahead by a 2-0 score. 

“That senior back line is big with Landry in the middle, along with Isabelle (Hale) and Whitlee (Morrow) on the outside,” Alexander said. “They are seniors, they've been tried throughout the season and before this. Even giving up a goal with a two-goal lead, they buckled down and we rode it out. The outside mids, and the defensive mid, and at the end, (sophomore) Landyn Hodson getting back to cover the back line, she stepped up big there.”

Then came maybe the best save of the match, season and of Jackson’s career with 13:01 left on the clock, as the Fairfield senior keeper made a one-handed diving save, in a one-on-one matchup, diving to the right side of the net and keeping the ball from sailing past her. 

That save kept Fairfield ahead by one goal, then Jackson was at it again with another diving save, this time making a two-handed stop on pressure applied by the Lady Warriors on a shot attempt with 10:45 left in the match. 

“I just go for the ball,” Jackson said of making the save in the moment. “I just try to be strong and have the mindset that it isn’t going in. That was the first time I have made a save like that in that situation.”

Alexander said his senior keeper “makes a difference.

“She is one that we can count on when times are needed for her, and she made a lot of great saves at the end,” he said. “I’m thinking about the one where she dove to the right and got down, and Meri is a taller player, and for taller players, it is harder to get down. She got down when she needed to, and it was great.” 

The defense of Fairfield had another big kick by Teeters with 9:50 left in regulation. Following that save, the intensity of the match continued to pick up, as each minute continued to tick away with FHS still ahead by one goal. 

EHS had one more shot at the goal with 1:31 on the scoreboard at Hillsboro, but it sailed wide right. The two teams had another big battle in front of the net, with EHS having two more corner kick chances, but it was the senior Henninger kicking the ball away from Fairfield territory with 25 seconds left in the match that basically ended any chances of Eastern tying the score, sending the Lady Lions the Sweet 16. 

“It is truly special to be a part of this,” Henninger said, about winning a third district championship in four years. “We are a family, we win, we lose, we bleed and we die together, so it is honestly just super special to come out here. For the seniors to not only get one district championship, but it is really rare to see a team get three district championships, especially back-to-back. I am just glad we were able to pull off a win.”

Following the win, Alexander reflected on how special the group of seniors he has is to him.

“These seniors are special. This is their third district championship, and they have grown, become leaders. They have become the calm in the storm at times, and they have become the storm at times when they need to against the other team,” he said. 

Fairfield (12-5-3) will next play on Tuesday, Nov. 3 at Herrnstein Field in Chillicothe, as they will face fellow Div. V SE District champion and SHAC rival, the Fayetteville Lady Rockets (16-4-3), at 7 p.m. in the Regional Semifinals (Region 18). No. 3 seeded Fayetteville defeated No. 2 seeded Minford, 3-1 in their district final match on Thursday at HHS, winning their first-ever district championship. 

“We will play a good team in the regional semifinals, but it is a team who at least we know who they are and what they are,” Alexander said. “Again, this is a good team win. I am proud of these girls. They have been through a lot, and they have earned a lot of this. They have earned all of this.”