Circleville 3, McClain 0
Circleville broke through in the second half to defeat visiting Greenfield McClain 3-0 Monday night.
The two sets of Tigers were scoreless in the first half.
With 33:20 left in the second half, Blain Fowler used an assist from Kaden Paxton to put Circleville on the scoreboard.
Three minutes later, a shot from Paxton was stopped but the McClain keeper wasn’t able to get control of it and Fowler finished it off for a 2-0 Circleville lead.
“I’m proud of our guys for staying after it and finding a way to get a win tonight. McClain always plays tough and physical, and we knew it wouldn’t be an easy game for us,” Circleville coach Evan Callihan said. “They were pretty defensive minded, and it made scoring difficult for us early on. We had many shots, but we weren’t able to put many on target like we needed.
“In the second half we were able to create better chances and find ways to score. Sophomores Blain Fowler and Kaden Paxton came up big for us offensively creating two goals for us which helped take some pressure off.”
With half of a minute left in the contest, Bear Cuic used an assist from Kamale Magagi-Ali to finish off the game’s scoring.
“I was really proud of Bear for finding the back of the net. He is someone that we have been moving around in a lot of different positions and he is someone that has a great attitude and approaches every day with a desire to get better,” Callihan said. “Seeing him score was a great moment for us as a team. It shows how much everyone on the team cares about him with how excited everyone was after he scored.”
The win improves Circleville’s season mark to 6-1.
“Our defense has been able to remain steady and those guys keep improving,” Callihan said. “Zack Bell has been strong and solid in the middle for us, and he is someone that plays with a high motor. He’s one of the most competitive players I have coached and that has helped us continue to grow throughout the season.
“Austin Bartchy, Logan Huggins and Greyson Buckley and our goalie, Will Flory, have shown a lot of fight and grit as they rarely ever come out of the game. Freshman Cailen Johnson stepped up big for us playing defense the whole game which isn’t his normal position. Cailen continues to improve as a freshman, and he has been a big contributor for us.”
Circleville hosts Amanda-Clearcreek (0-8) at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.
McClain 2, Circleville 1
Circleville scored first, but McClain answered twice to go home with a 2-1 win.
Circleville senior Makya Cockerham started the game’s scoring when she put the ball in the net 14 minutes into the game.
McClain tied the game four minutes later when Paisley Pryor broke through the Circleville defense.
A second half goal gave McClain the lead.
Circleville (2-6) travels to Bishop Rosecrans Wednesday.
OCC Buckeye
DELAWARE — Teays Valley finished third at the fourth Ohio Capital Conference Buckeye Division golf event Monday.
Canal Winchester won the event with a team 365 and CW senior Anna MacHamer was the medalist with a 77 at Oakhaven Golf Club.
Lancaster had a team 410, while the Vikings had a 412 and Pickerington Central a 413. Logan shot a team 440.
Adison Abele led the Vikings with a 98, Brooklynn Lowry shot 100, Morgan Laxton shot a 106 and Makinna Pinion shot 108.
CW holds the lead in the divisional race with 16 points, TV – which has finished second in the three of the four – is second with 11 and Lancaster has nine points.