The annual matchup of Bulldogs is always entertaining because of the many friends that are turned into rivals when the Woodridge HS girl's soccer team clashes with the Stow HS Lady Bulldogs. So many of the players have been teammates on club teams throughout their careers that the warmup and introduction resembles a reunion.
But the teams become serious once the whistle blows. The early part of the game ranged back and forth, with Stow using possession to probe the Woodridge defense, and Woodridge playing a counterattack style. Stow tallied the first goal just 5 minutes in when Alicia George stepped in to win a ball on the sideline and then found Vickie Havas who found the back of the net for the third straight game. Stow continued pressing, and just missed a couple of times, first when a Marena Toth cross was just too far ahead of Havas, and then when an Abby Lawson shot was saved. Tiffany Keller got in the act and put a shot just over the bar. In the meantime, the Woodridge counterattack began to get its opportunities, mainly through the efforts of talented Woodridge senior forward Brittany Charles. The Stow coaching staff made an adjustment, moving George from her midfield position to mark Charles. The rest of the team committed to closing off opportunities, with defenders Courtney Reginald, Jessica Swanger, Stefanie Keller, Lauren Schneider and Katee Wensinger playing a solid and poised game to win the ball and play out of the back to maintain possession giving goalie Haley Hopkins a relatively easy night.
Stow got a second goal before half and nearly added a third. Marena Toth equaled Havas' feat by scoring in her third straight game, this time off an assist by Adrianna Tondi. Tiffany Keller's last second shot found the back of the net as well, but just a second after the half ran out.
Woodridge was able to cut the lead in half when Charles was fouled just outside the box, and her free kick found the upper right corner. Julia Burrowbridge, Bailey Norton and Morgan Conrad provided pressure on the wings and helped the defense by quickly recovering behind the ball when Woodridge would start their counter attack. Then the two Stow forwards pushed the lead back up to 2 when Havas assisted on Toth's second goal. Tondi rounded out the scoring for the final 4-1 score.
It was a well played game by our Bulldogs, who next face 2 regional powerhouse programs when they travel to Strongsville and Solon.
