OHSAA girls lacrosse: Sycamore suffers defeat in state semi to unbeaten Upper Arlington

BELLBROOK, Ohio – It was their first state semifinal appearance in three years, but it may have been the least satisfying for Sycamore High School's girls lacrosse team.

Undefeated Upper Arlington flexed their muscles early and often on their way to a convincing 20-2 knockout of the Lady Aves. It was the most points Sycamore had allowed all season and the fewest they had scored.

"They are so good," Sycamore coach Eddie Clark said. "They're one of the best teams I've seen in Ohio in 24 years of coaching. They just have better athletes. They move the ball well. They have better skill players. We were hoping we could compete with them. Obviously, we couldn't. I have a feeling they'll be carrying a trophy around on Saturday."

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Senior Cam Callaghan, who will play at the University of Cincinnati, scored seven times for the Golden Bears, while Ohio State commit Kampbell Stone scored four times and Louisville-bound Rian Adkins had three.

"I wouldn't be able to do it without my girls behind me feeding me," future Bearcat Callaghan said. "The athleticism and discipline this team has is what's bringing us to the championship this year."

Callaghan has been committed to UC since her junior year. They first spotted her as a freshman, even though they weren't on her initial list of colleges. She first visited the campus last spring.

A little more than four minutes into the first half, Upper Arlington's Brennan Campbell scored the first goal of the contest. The Golden Bears' goals then came in rapid fashion forcing a running clock with just over seven minutes remaining before the call for concessions. In one stretch, they had scored three in 25 seconds. In the first 10 minutes, Sycamore had nine turnovers.

It was 13-0 after the first 25 minutes and Clark had flipped his hat backward.

Sycamore wouldn't score until 43 seconds into the second half when Carly Thiel broke the seal.  It was just the fifth time the Lady Aves were held under 10 points, with four of those being losses.

Upper Arlington continues to be a thorn in the side of the Sycamore girls, as well as most of Ohio. The 10-time state champion Golden Bears extend their record to 22-0.

Sycamore has had seven previous state semifinal berths and has three state titles and four runner-up finishes. In all but one of those years, they also battled Upper Arlington.

"They're phenomenal," Clark said. "It's a very good program. It's a very rich tradition. They're what we shoot to be. If you're coaching in Ohio and you're not shooting to beat Upper Arlington, you shouldn't be a coach."

Upper Arlington had previously beaten Sycamore 12-4 on their home field April 15. Sycamore's other losses came in the season opener with Division I finalist New Albany and May 12 against Division II defending champion Mariemont.

"I said to them in the last huddle, 'Is Upper Arlington better than you?'" Clark said. "They said, 'Yeah coach, they are." I said, 'Good. We all agree!'"

Clark recently was named the Region 4 Division I Coach of the Year. The Lady Aves finish 19-4.

Upper Arlington advances to the Division I state title game against  New Albany Saturday at 4 p.m. at Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Sycamore girls lacrosse downed in DI state semi