Photo Credit: Shannon Eldreth

By Roger Gordon

Correspondent

BOYS SOCCER

ROOTSTOWN

Rootstown dominated visiting Mineral Ridge so much on Oct. 21 in a Division V sectional final that two Rovers had hat tricks.

Senior forward Zach Pastor and junior halfback Dylan Boland were responsible for two-thirds of their team’s goals in a 9-0 triumph that was called at halftime due to the OHSAA’s eight-goal postseason mercy rule.

Pastor added two assists, while senior forward Sam Textor knocked two into the net.

“Zach is a great one-on-one player and a good scorer, but he looks to pass and give the assist,” head coach Charlie Voth said. “He basically plays a total game. He’s not a selfish player, and if people are open, he gets them on crosses.”

Voth wanted his team, which has a 13-2-2 record, to start strong and fast like it always does, and it did.

On top of that, the Rams were short-handed.

“We took it to them. They played hard, but our shots were going in,” said the coach, who inserted his JV players into the game with about 15 minutes left in the half.

Rootstown, seeded second, will host Northwestern on Thursday at 7 p.m. in a district semifinal.

“I expect that we’ll play our style: Good passing, good shooting and hard-nosed defense,” said Voth. “Northwestern has played a lot of good teams, really good teams. They play a good defense, and they let the game come to them offensively. It’s going to be a good, hard-nosed game. We beat them 3-1 at the start of the season, but this is a whole new ballgame now.”

FIELD

Field was struggling to put the ball in the net, especially in the first half, in a Division IV sectional final Oct. 24 at home against Berkshire.

The Falcons, though, got their act together and came away with a 3-1 victory, improving to 13-5 on the season.

“It was a pretty close game,” head coach Logan Spath said. “We were happy with how we played overall. The guys were playing well.”

Down 1-0 in the first half, sophomore midfielder Paxson Silveus tied the score off an assist from senior striker Ethan Flores-Soler.

“It was a throw-in that we put into the box,” said Spath. “The ball bounced around, but Ethan worked hard to get it to Paxson, who finished it off.”

Two second-half goals by senior striker Nathan Fulks on a penalty kick and then by Flores-Soler were enough for the home team to hang on for the win.

Sophomore goalkeeper Adam Fanger had several saves.

Field, seeded fifth, will host ninth-seeded Mentor Lake Catholic in a district semifinal Thursday at 7 p.m.

“We’ve been improving a lot over these past few weeks especially,” said the coach. “I think everyone just started to really click together coming into the playoffs. I’m hoping to continue that and keep the momentum that they’ve been building together growing.”

GIRLS SOCCER

AURORA

Aurora has a chance to make history on Halloween.

The Greenmen have never won a district championship, but will try to erase past demons in a Division III district final against Rocky River on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Nordonia.

“The players’ goal at the start of the season was to win a district final,” head coach Rob Harrison said. “That would be amazing, coming in here not knowing these girls, kind of throwing their world upside down and changing formations and all of the things that I do as coach differently from ones in the past. I want to win districts as coach pretty much for these girls.”

Aurora, seeded second, advanced to the district-title game by defeating Midview 3-0 on Oct. 25 in a sectional final and Avon Lake 2-1 Oct. 27 in a district semifinal — both at home.

“We just couldn’t score in the Grafton game,” said Harrison. “It was dominated on one side. I think we had over 50 shots on goal. Their keeper had 30 saves. They had a very good center back, and they had a very good goalie, which kept the ball out of the net. Our finishing wasn’t the greatest, but we ended up gritting through it and scoring a few goals.”

Two of those goals were by sophomore forward Isabelle Hanus.

Said the coach, “Isabelle is a hustler up top, does well to connect with the other forwards up there.”

Against the Shoremen, the Greenmen led 2-0 late when the visitors pulled within a single goal with about 3:30 to go in the game on a score that ricocheted off the post.

Defensively, the home team played well.

“One lucky bounce gave them their one goal,” Harrison said, pointing to senior defenders Mallory Curtis and Caitlin Miller as the catalysts. “Mallory has just been a rock back there. Caitlin has come back from injury, and she’s helped steady the defense.”

Goalkeepers Kelly Gerlock, a senior, and Leah Wolf, a sophomore, made saves as needed in both games.

“I thought we played great,” said Harrison. “As a team, we wanted to come out and win it and were ready to play.”

Aurora will carry a 13-1-3 record into the Rocky River game.

“Rocky River is going to be a very well-coached team,” Harrison said. “They’ve been dealing with a lot of injuries this year, but they’re finally getting healthy, so it’s going to be a tough challenge. They’re a formidable opponent. I know they’re going to be ready to play, but I think our team is up to it. We did have a major injury in the Avon Lake game that we’re waiting to see what happens with. Every time I think our players might not be ready, though, they step up and play their hardest like the Avon Lake game and making it to a district final.”