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Centerville girls soccer gets slow start, falls in semifinal

Slow start hurtful against Dublin Jerome, state’s No. 4 team in D-I.

Dublin Jerome’s Lindsay Agnew and Centerville’s Monica Hodapp wrestle for the ball during a Division I girls state soccer semifinal at Bellbrook High School on Wednesday.

Staff photo by Teesha McClam Dublin Jerome’s Lindsay Agnew and Centerville’s Monica Hodapp wrestle for the ball during a Division I girls state soccer semifinal at Bellbrook High School on Wednesday.

ENLARGE PHOTO

Photos: Centerville vs. Dublin Jerome

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By John Cummings, Contributing Writer Updated 11:08 AM Thursday, November 10, 2011

BELLBROOOK — Centerville girls soccer coach Don Skelton looked across the field at Miami Valley South Stadium and watched Dublin Jerome celebrating its first trip to the Division I girls soccer state finals, then turned back and looked at his young squad consoling each other.

“They know (what it takes now),” Skelton said following the Elks’ 3-2 semifinal loss Wednesday night. “They want to be the ones over there cheering instead of over here like this. We had a heckuva season, but it doesn’t take away the hurt.”

The Elks, making their second semifinal appearance in three years and fifth in school history, made a furious dash to the finish as they worked to erase a 3-1 Celtics lead.

Abbey Collins, one of 10 underclassmen on the team, got the Elks within shooting distance when she rifled a shot into the lower right corner in the 69th minute to cut the deficit to 3-2. Centerville had one more shot at forcing overtime, but Collins’ header was off the mark off a corner kick from Jackie Elston in the 78th minute.

“The first 60 minutes of the game we let them have their way with us,” Skelton said after his squad finished 18-2-2. “We just didn’t come out and play. When we had our back to the wall, we played like gangbusters.”

The Celtics got a little help from the wind on their first two goals, both high shots that danced just over Elks keeper Halle Pyle. Dublin Jerome took a 1-0 lead less than eight minutes into the game, but the Elks tied it on their lone shot on goal in the first half when Katie Weiskircher rifled home a shot from the top of the box off a throw-in by Elston.

Dublin Jerome, the fourth- ranked team in the state, turned their 2-1 halftime lead into a 3-1 lead in the 53rd minute, but it would be the last time they would be able to beat Pyle.

The Louisville-bound keeper turned away seven shots, including a kick save in the 63rd minute and a diving stop in the 68th minute.

On the night, Dublin Jerome out-shot Centerville 10-2.

“There are no excuses,” Skelton said. “We came out flat the first 60 minutes and let them handle us.

“This is a tough loss. We’ve been here two of the last three years and can’t get out of (the semifinals).”

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