Soccer Team Wins Division I Regional Final
Boys Soccer: St. Charles overcomes season of turmoil, New Albany to win regional crown
Boys Soccer: St. Charles overcomes season of turmoil, New Albany to win regional crown
The Cardinals are in the state tournament for the ninth time with the last coming in 2016 where it was runner-up. They’ll play Cincinnati Moeller in a state semifinal on Nov. 8 at Wright State.
Zeke Shalawylo and Charlie Saas each scored for St. Charles in the early part of the second half.
“It’s all hats off to players,” Cardinals coach Chris Vonau said. “They drive the car. Our players are so well-committed and so well-disciplined. We had some injuries and some key guys out (through the season). A lot of teams I know would have laid down or (said), ‘Oh, whoa is me’ or take pity on themselves.”
St. Charles (10-7-2) defeated New Albany 1-0 on Aug. 29 – the last of four consecutive victories to begin the season. But the Cardinals lost their next four and went 3-7-2 to close the regular season.
Vonau and Ulry were planning on spending the evening together over a beverage. “We are – he’s buying, though,” Ulry said.
“It’s not just the people on the field, but the coaches and the players that mock up another team,” sophomore midfielder Ryan Sullivan said. “They make the difference – they’re what makes this possible. It’s just the hard work and grit we put in during every practice that goes into the games.”
Shalawylo headed in a Padraig O’Reilly corner kick from the opposite side to give St. Charles a 1-0 with 36 minutes, 17 seconds left in the game. “This team doesn’t give up,” said Shalawylo, a junior midfielder. “Through the struggles, we knew we could do big things. We were figuring out formations and personnel, but we never doubted.” Then, Sullivan fed Saas open on the left side and he found the back of the net to give the Cardinals a 2-0 lead with 27:04 remaining.
New Albany (16-5-2) had a goal deflected in by St. Charles waived off in the 61st minute because of an offside call. “St. Charles was the better team today,” Eagles coach Johnny Ulry said. “They came out and wanted the game. They were physical, they were fast and they had a great game plan. We had our opportunities today.”
New Albany played for a regional title for the fourth consecutive season, winning twice and finishing state runner-up both times. “Just getting here four years in a row – nobody else in central Ohio can say that they’ve done that,” Ulry said. “I’m so proud of our program and what our culture is and how we got here. We probably overachieved this year with all the players we’ve lost over the last couple of years. But we believe we should always be here. We’re one of the top teams, if not the top team, in central Ohio every year. We’re not going to win them all.
Teagan Lescody scored for the Eagles with 9 seconds remaining off an assist by goalie Wyatt Butler.
“(New Albany) is the toughest team we’ve faced by grit, by never-ending energy,” Vonau said. “I love what Johnny does – he’s a good friend of mine. He runs a heck of a program. He’s one of my best friends. He came up and congratulated me after the game and I would have done the same. I’m happy for his successes and vice versa, he’s happy for mine. We’re going to see each other later on.”
Vonau and Ulry were planning on spending the evening together over a beverage. “We are – he’s buying, though,” Ulry said.
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