OHSAA girls lacrosse: Upper Arlington, New Albany to face off for Division I state title
BELLBROOK — Perhaps the only thing that didn’t go right for the Upper Arlington girls lacrosse team May 31 in a Division I state semifinal was that the Golden Bears missed their first two shots.
Little was in doubt from there as the Bears rolled into their first state final since 2019, routing Cincinnati Sycamore 20-2 at Miami Valley South Stadium.
Camryn Callaghan’s seven goals as well as Kampbell Stone’s four goals and two assists led the way as UA improved to 22-0 and advanced to the state final against longtime rival New Albany at 4 p.m. June 4 at Historic Crew Stadium.
“The momentum was such a key,” Stone said. “Once we got going, that was huge for us. Most of our goals are off the fast break and those are the most exciting, I think, especially off a caused turnover. We emphasized fast ball movement and making crisp passes.”
The Bears won their regular-season meeting with Sycamore 12-4 on April 15. They matched that number of goals with 4 minutes, 37 seconds left in the first half May 31, having invoked the running clock three minutes earlier.
UA blew the game open with six goals in a span of 8:08 early in the half, and scored three more in 26 seconds for a 10-0 lead with 10:18 to go until halftime.
“We know every team will bring their best game against us, no matter what. (A score of) 20-2 is not what we were expecting, but we’re thrilled,” Bears coach Morgan Fee Maldovan said. “To get some huge caused turnovers and go on a run was a huge momentum shift. We maintained position on the draw and that let us continue to push.”
Elizabeth Goth made 13 saves for UA and Aoife Black stopped six shots for Sycamore, which finished 19-4.
Carly Thiel scored both Aviators goals within the first five minutes of the second half.
“UA is one of the best teams I’ve seen in Ohio in 24 years of coaching,” Sycamore coach Eddie Clark said. “They just have better athletes. They move the ball well. ... We were hoping we could compete with them and obviously we couldn’t.”
The Bears, who have outscored their opponents 349-90, defeated New Albany 7-6 on April 28 in UA’s closest game of the season. UA is seeking its sixth championship in seven seasons and 11th overall.
Two of those came against the Eagles, in 2018 and 2019.
“After last year (losing in a regional final), we’re out for revenge. We just keep hustling. We don’t stop,” Stone said. “Cam Callaghan always says ‘all gas, no brakes.’ ”
—Dave Purpura
New Albany 10, Massillon Jackson 7
ASHLAND — Highlight reel plays. Wild swings in momentum. Temperatures in excess of 90 degrees on the Ashland University turf.
The Division I state semifinal between New Albany and Jackson provided all the intensity expected with the backdrop of it being perhaps the warmest day of the year. Fans and players battled the elements, as well as their nerves, before the Eagles came out on top.
"It was a back and forth game," Jackson coach John Kroah said. "It was as close as you would expect given the teams involved. They are one of the premier programs in the state and they played like it."
The Polar Bears raced out to a 4-1 lead on the strength of two goals by Lauren Pallotta. New Albany responded with a run of four goals in a span of less than four minutes to take a 5-4 lead.
"We just had to start playing our game," New Albany coach Elaina Enich said. "We were losing the draw battle early and we had to play through that rough stretch. Once we settled in and started to generate chances, we were able to score some goals."
Jackson managed to tie the game twice but never regained the lead. Pallotta tied it 5-all with her third goal with 4:30 left in the first half. Annise Berkeley tied the game 7-all with 20:58 to go in the second half. New Albany regained the lead in less than a minute each time.
"We just couldn't get things going again," Kroah said. "It's hard to talk about because it starts to sound like you are making excuses and that's not what we are trying to do. We hit the side of the goal pipes several times with shots. Their goalkeeper also had a tremendous game. She made 11 saves. That's probably as many as anyone has had against us all year."
That may not be a surprise given the way senior Annika Duncan has played this season. Duncan began the season as a backup before being forced into action due to injury. She was recently named to the All-Ohio team and was the goalkeeper of the year for her region and conference.
"She has exceeded all of our expectations," Enich said. "I think she's even exceeded her own expectations. I think she even surprises herself with some of the plays she makes. She has cleaned up on awards during the postseason and she deserves every one of them.”
While Duncan was making stops, sophomore Ellie McClelland scored four goals to lead the Eagles.
"We talked about it when we were trailing ... but as a team we just felt like we needed this game," McClelland said. "We felt like this was our year and we didn't want to let that slip away. We've all been waiting for this opportunity all season and we played our hearts out. Luckily we were able to find a way to finish."
Abby Cole and Katie Kaucheck added two goals each for New Albany. Madison Paz and Mary Carson also scored for the Eagles.
Pallotta led Jackson with four goals. Berkeley, Katie Debevec and Allie Hartnett added one goal each.
—Cliff Hickman, Canton Repository
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Upper Arlington, New Albany to meet for girls lacrosse state title
