High school volleyball took centerstage with three big stories from Saturday.
AARON RIDENOUR GAINS CAREER WIN #500
Photo Courtesy of Logan Elm Twitter
Logan Elm Volleyball Coach Aaron Ridenour gained his 500th career varsity win as the Braves took the runner-up position at the Unioto Invitational, Saturday.
Ridenour’s Logan Elm squad fell in the title match to rival Circleville after winning two matches to get to the final. Their (25-21, 25-13) win over Washington CH was followed by a (21-25, 25-23, 25-18) win over Chillicothe- which gained Coach Ridenour his milestone 500th career victory. Ridenour has also coached at Madison Plains, Bloom Carroll and Unioto.
UNIOTO VOLLEYBALL INVITATIONAL
Circleville won the team title at the Unioto Invitational with a (25-14, 25-13) win over McClain, then a sweep of Unioto (25-10, 25-19). The Tigers concluded with a (19-25, 25-11, 25-17) title match win over Logan Elm.
Courtesy of Circleville Volleyball Twitter
ADENA WINS LEHMAN CATHOLIC INVITATIONAL
Courtesy of Adena Volleyball
At the Lehman Catholic Invitational, (6-0) Adena ran the table with three victories to claim the team title for the first time in the 17 years they have been playing in the annual showcase of some of the top Division 3 and 4 teams in Ohio.
The Warriors beat Lima Central Catholic (25-15, 25-16), then thumped tournament host Lehman Catholic (25-11, 25-8). In the finals, Adena breezed by Fairlawn (25-13, 25-15) for the championship.
Previous to this, Adena’s best finish was in 2014 where the Warriors were runner-up.
Watch the Litter Media Game of the Week Postgame Show with Dan Ramey and Mike Smith. CLICK HERE:
The (2-1) Washington CH Blue Lions scored 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to beat the Paint Valley Bearcats 32-29. The Bearcats led 29-12 with 10:08 left in the game, when WCH started their come-back.
WCH scored on their opening drive as Troy Thompson connected with AJ Dallmayer on a 22 yard TD pass at 6:23 of the first quarter. The PAT was blocked and the Blue Lions were up 6-0.
That was the only score of the opening quarter, but Paint Valley struck quickly in the second period when Dax Estep found Dillon McDonald down the left sideline for a TD at the 10:51 mark. The PAT kick by Cole Miller made it 7-6 Bearcats.
WCH was driving when Troy Thompson hit Calum Brown on a big pass play deep in PV territory. But, on the next play, Paint Valley’s Cole Miller intercepted a pass at the goal line and returned it 38 yards.
Later in that drive, Trent Mettler took a Dax Estep pass for a TD, followed by 2-point conversion for a 15-6 Bearcats lead with :44 remaining in first half. PV then held WCH inside the 20 on their last possession of the half and led 15-6.
Litter Media/Mike Smith
The third quarter saw Paint Valley’s Cavan Cooper grab a pick-six for a score at the 8:38 mark for a 22-6 lead, following the PAT kick.
The Blue Lions’ Rishuan Burns scooped up a Paint Valley fumble and took it the house at 7:11 of the third quarter. The PAT failed and PV’s lead was cut to 22-12.
The third quarter ended at 22-12 and PV with the ball.
The Bearcats’ Cordell Grubb appeared to seal the deal with a 14 yard TD run, followed by a PAT kick for a 29-12 lead with 10:08 left in the game.
That’s when Washington CH would start their 20-0 run for a come-back win.
Driving down the field, Rocky Jones scored on a 5 yard run with 8:33 left. The PAT was missed and Paint Valley’s lead was cut to 29-18.
Washington’s defense held PV and got the ball back on a punt. Two pass completions later, the Blue Lions connected on a 40 yard TD pass from Raleigh Haithcock to Isaiah Haithcock with 3:17 left. The 2-point conversion failed and Paint Valley was down to 29-24.
Again, the WCH defense would stop Paint Valley and get the ball back with about 2:00 to play.
The Lions drove down the field and took the 30-29 lead when Raleigh Haithcock fired a 5 yard TD pass to AJ Dallmayer for the score with 33 seconds remaining. The two point conversion succeeded when Haithcock connected with Tanner Lemaster in the back corner of the end zone for a 32-29 lead.
Paint Valley was pinned deep in their own territory on the ensuing kick-off and WCH three plays later recovered a PV fumble to seal the win.
Raleigh Haithcock was our Litter Media McDonald’s Player of the Game.
Washington CH improves to (2-1) and faces Minford while Paint Valley drops to (1-2). PV opens SVC play next week against Westfall.
In other area games: Washington CH 32, Paint Valley 29 … Chillicothe 32, Walnut Ridge 0 … Miami Trace 40, Logan Elm 0 … Sciotoville East 42, Southeastern 24 … East Clinton 33, Hillsboro 14 … Zane Trace 28, Vinton County 21 … Piketon 62, Lucasville Valley 36 … Portsmouth West 41, Adena 12 … Waverly 47, Unioto 10 … Huntington 28, Northwest 20 … Jackson 24, Tri-Valley 3 … Heath 45, Circleville 0 … Teays Valley 23, Ashland 21 … Saint Charles 14, Amanda Clearcreek 9 … Bloom Carroll 23, Jonathan Alder 3 … Fairfield Union 26, Lakewood 12 … Wheelersburg 35, Russell, Ky. 16 … Rock Hill 23, Oak Hill 0 … Portsmouth 56, Deer Park 21 … Minford 27, Wellston 18 … Marietta 36, Athens 28 OT … Point Pleasant 26, Gallia Academy 22 … Alexander 55, Belpre 14 … Liberty Union 14, Nelsonville York 6 … Ironton 20, Fairland 14 … Lancaster 34, Olentangy 15 …
The Piketon Redstreaks, after a couple of close calls, finally get their first SVC Match win of the season with a score of 163. That edged Unioto by one stroke.
Match Medal honors went to Piketon’s Owen Armstrong with a 36.
Here are the team scores: Piketon 163 Unioto 164 Zane Trace 179 Westfall 179 Southeastern 202 Adena 202 Paint Valley 209 Huntington NA
Top 20 Scorers 1 Owen Armstrong 36 2 Jacob Hicks 37 3 Logan Cummins 38 4 Braxton Platt 38 5 Charlie Lewis 40 6 Davis Kerns 40 7 Jace Tucker 41 8 Daniel Hughes 42 9 Aaron Evans 43 10 Emma Winland 43 11 Jon Grondolsky Jr 43 12 Gabe Dettwiller 43 13 Brayden Popp 44 14 Quade Kaltenbach 45 15 Jasiah Story 45 16 Dominick Bush 45 17 Ethan Puckett 46 18 Christian Horn 46 19 Henry Zitzelberger 47 20 Michael Good 47
The Blue Lions of Washington Court House from the FAC, travel to Paint Valley to face the Bearcats of the SVC in our Litter Media Game of the Week in high school football Friday night.
WCH Coach Chuck Williamson says they got away with some mistakes in Week 1, still getting a victory, but those mistakes caught up with them in a Week 2 loss to a tough Western Brown team, which now make the Blue Lions (1-1).
Paint Valley Coach Cory Dye and two of their assistant coaches are former coaches from WCH, which makes that aspect of this match-up an interesting one.
Coach Chuck Williamson says he’s concerned about the Bearcats athleticism, saying “they have size and the ability to fly around to the ball.”
But, he says the Blue Lions are pretty athletic as well. He says they are an “up-tempo spread team offensively”, adding that they have some “very talented skill guys”, which includes 6’5- 230 pound Tanner Lemaster, who has received D-1 college offers from Michigan State, Indiana, and Tennessee.
The Blue Lions have great strength in their front 11 on both sides of the ball, running a two-platoon system with very few players ever playing both offense and defense.
From Bearcats Coach Cory Dye, he gave the same props to Washington CH, knowing they will be tough to defend. Paint Valley also enters the game at (1-1), winning in Week 1, but suffered a tough loss to state powerhouse West Jefferson in Week 2.
Due to an injury in Week 1, Paint Valley had Cavan Cooper playing running back last week in their loss to West Jefferson and Coach Dye says they expect him to remain in the running back spot against Washington CH, with Dax Estep at quarterback.
Be watching Litter Media GOTW Live Postgame Show late Friday night on Litter Media Facebook.
The Amanda Clearcreek Aces picked up their 400th victory in the school’s illustrious football history, dominating Friday’s 30-3 decision at Unioto.
The Aces improved to (2-0) on the season while the Shermans dropped to (0-2).
Despite some early scoring fireworks, the game would see no points scored in either the second or third quarters.
Amanda Clearcreek took control of the game early, scoring on their first possession of the game when quarterback Nate Hunter connected with running back Tayvon Miller out of the backfield, who took off over the middle on the catch and went to the end-zone for the TD. The PAT kick was good, handing Amanda a 7-0 start with still 11:14 left in the first quarter.
The Shermans only scoring drive in the game came on their first possession, driving down the field and getting into the red zone before their drive stalled. They settled for a 25 yard field goal by River Pedtigrew to cut the Aces lead to 7-3 at 8:16 of first quarter
It didn’t take Amanda long to respond as QB Nate Hunter scored on a broken play inside the red zone at 4:12 of the first quarter for 14-3 lead.
The first quarter ended with Amanda leading Unioto 14-3.
In the second quarter, Unioto was driving when Amanda’s Tayvon Miller intercepted a Newt Hoops pass deep down field, giving the Aces the ball with 1:10 in half at the Unioto 44.
The first half ended with Amanda leading Unioto 14-3.
Unioto QB Newt Hoops sets the Shermans offense on their lone scoring drive of the game.
The third quarter was scoreless, which sent us into the fourth quarter as Amanda was in a third and long from their own 8 yard line. QB Nate Hunter connected on long TD pass to Tayvon Miller followed by the PAT kick being missed, giving the Aces a 20-3 lead over Unioto with 10:04 left in game.
The score expanded to 27-3 Amanda when Tayvon Miller scored his third TD of the game on another run followed by the PAT kick with 4:35 left in the game.
The scoring was capped off by Amanda’s Jonathan Weaver’s field goal to add to the Aces lead over Unioto 30-3 with 1:18 left.
Amanda runs their record to (2-0) and gains their football programs 400th all-time win with 30-3 overUnioto.
Next week’s Litter Media GOTW is Washington CH at Paint Valley. See the highlights after the game on our Litter Media Game of the Week Postgame Show on Litter Media Facebook Live.
Unioto won SVC Golf Match #2 Wednesday with a team score of 171. Here is the order of team scores:
1st Unioto 171
2nd Piketon 179
3rd Zane Trace 187
4th Adena 197
5th Westfall 197
6th Southeastern 199
7th Paint Valley 222
8th Huntington
Tri-Medalist with a score of 40 each – Jon Grondolsky Jr. (Zane Trace), Jace Tucker (Unioto) and Braxton Platt (Unioto)
The order of top 20 golfers were: Jon Grondolsky Jr 40, Jace Tucker 40, Braxton Platt 40, Logan Cummins 43, Gavin Howard 43, Charlie Lewis 43, Brayden Popp 43, Jacob Hicks 44, Davis Kerns 44, Owen Armstrong 45, Sydney Ater 46, Brian Schobeloch 47, Josh Delong 47, Henry Zitzelberger 48, Brevin Wooldridge 48, Quade Kaltenbach 48, Keegan Snyder 49, Emma Winland 49, Gabe Dettwiller 50 and Bryson Dudgeon 50.
Here are the current SVC Golf Standings following two matches:
1
Unioto
16
8
8
2
Piketon
14
7
7
3
Zane Trace
12
6
6
4
Westfall
9
5
4
5
Adena
8
3
5
6
Southeastern
7
4
3
7
Paint Valley
4
2
2
8
Huntington
1
1
0
The next SVC #3 is at Pickaway CC on Thursday, September 2 at 4:30pm.
(Columbus) – The Ohio High School Athletic Association and Columbus Crew have announced an agreement to hold the OHSAA soccer state championship games at Lower.com Field for the next four years.
The new world-class stadium sits on 12 acres in the Arena District of downtown Columbus and has a capacity for over 20,000 supporters. The venue includes a 220,000 square-foot canopy that covers all supporters during the match, providing shelter from weather conditions throughout the season.
“As a Club that is committed to championing soccer in our community and growing the game we love, we feel privileged to host a tournament that is a staple of Ohio high school sports here at Lower.com Field,” said Crew President & General Manager Tim Bezbatchenko. “Having participated in Ohio high school soccer, hosting the final of this tournament resonates with me on a personal level. Historic Crew Stadium served as the venue for OHSAA state soccer championships for two decades, and we are proud to continue that tradition at our new home, where student athletes can experience what it’s like to play in a professional, state-of-the-art, world-class venue.”
The OHSAA soccer state championships had been hosted at the Crew’s former home, Historic Crew Stadium, since it opened in 1999. The 2021 OHSAA soccer state championship games will be played November 12 and 13.
“We are very thankful for the partnership with the Crew SC and their commitment to high school soccer in Ohio,” said Doug Ute, OHSAA Executive Director. “We are so excited for the schools and communities to conclude their season and play for a state championship at this amazing new venue. We watched as it was being built and hoped that we would have a chance to play our state championship games there.”
At 225 feet wide by 360 feet long, the surface of the pitch at Lower.com Field sits 22 feet below the concourse level. The SubAir system used in the pitch allows it to recover faster from adverse weather conditions, as it can increase the temperature of the pitch root zone by up to 28 degrees, allowing for events played in cold conditions to occur with less buildup that normally might affect the flow of the game. Additionally, the SubAir system can drain water from the pitch in three minutes, while gravity systems usually used in stadiums can take up to 60 minutes.
The Nordecke, the stadium’s supporters’ section, has a 37-degree rake – the steepest in Major League Soccer – and has a capacity for 3,364 supporters, making it the second-largest supporters’ section in MLS.
In Monday high school golf FAC Girls and SOC Boys league matches were played.
In the Frontier Athletic Conference Girls Match at Washington Court House, the Chillicothe Lady Cavs shot a team score of 207 to win Match #2 of the Girls Frontier Athletic Conference Golf season. Chillicothe’s Isabella Fischer and Miami Trace’s Libby Aleshire were co-medalist with 45’s. Alyssa Butler of Miami Trace was one stroke back while Julie Lemaster of Chillicothe shot a 47.
FAC Girls Match Team Scores: Chillicothe- 207 Miami Trace- 213 McClain- 235 Jackson- 240 Washington CH- 263 Hillsboro- NA Co-Medalist- Isabella Fischer of Chillicothe and Miami Trace’s Libby Aleshire (45)
In Boys SOC Golf Monday, Minford came away with the win with a 187. Kam Maple of Oak Hill took medal honors with a 38.
SOC Boys Match Team Scores: Minford 187 Waverly 200 Oak Hill 206 Portsmouth West 217 Northwest 222 Medalist- Kam Maple of Oak Hill (38)
The Big 10 Conference has come out with a policy that will be none too kind for teams unable to play a scheduled game for the 2021-22 season, due to COVID.
While the vaccination rates among Big 10 teams is high, variants still are spreading through the country. If a program is incapable of fielding a team for a game, the canceling team will have to forfeit that contest, according to the Big 10.
The Big Ten released its COVID-19 policy on Monday morning, and if a team cannot play, it will receive a loss and the other team will get the win. If both teams have to cancel, then it’s considered a no-contest.
“In collaboration and communication with the Big Ten Conference Athletic Directors, Chancellors and Presidents, the Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases, and the Sports Medicine Committee – effective today – the conference has determined that if one of its member institutions is unable to play a conference contest due to COVID-19, that contest shall be declared a forfeit and will not be rescheduled. That contest shall be considered a loss for the team impacted by COVID-19 and a win for its opponent in the conference standings. If both of the two competing teams are unable to participate in a scheduled Conference competition due to COVID-19 and as a result the competition is unable to occur on the calendar day on which it is scheduled, the competition shall be considered a “no contest.”
