XENIA — Miamisburg turned out to be the obstacle Beavercreek couldn’t get past.
The Lady Beavers attack was seemingly just a step out of reach of the ball during a 2-1 loss in the Division I sectional finals at Xenia’s Doug Adams Stadium on Tuesday.
“You know when you reach this round you’re going to get a good game,” head coach Steve Popp said. “Two good teams and I think Miamisburg is having a really good year.”
Beavercreek, the No. 4-seed, had won or tied 12 of its last 13 matches, but the only defeat had been against No. 3 Miamisburg, who were the co-champions of the GWOC.
The Vikings grabbed the lead in the 13th minute after a shot saved by Niley Baker was deflected back in front of the net. Megan Gregory was on the spot and sent a ball to the opposite side of the net for a 1-0 lead.
Beavercreek spent the first half attempting to run through the defense using long through passes and was called for offsides three times. A successful ball late in the first half saw Becca Morse get a shot off in the box but it went directly at the Miamisburg keeper.
A strong start to the second saw saw Ella Walling’s corner kick lead to an equalizer. The ball was headed toward the outside of the net, but Addy Canter was in the vicinity and got Beavercreek on the board with a shot across the net.
With just over 23 minutes left, Miamisburg went back ahead during a scramble off a corner kick. Baker was able to punch at the initial kick, but a rebounded shot hit off the crossbar before a third attempt found the roof of the net.
A solid Miamisburg back line did not many close shot attempts for Beavercreek down the stretch as the Beavers season ended.
“Credit to their backs,” Popp said. “As much as we had the ball and tried to get close, it’s hard to hold us to one goal and they did a good job back there.”
Miamisburg advances to a district final game on Saturday while Beavercreek finishes the season with a 12-5-2 record.
