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Bellbrook soccer grads help Walsh to a conference title

Bellbrook residents succeed in multiple sports.

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By Dave Long, Contributing Writer 8:14 PM Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Being conference champions will have to suffice for Matt Bly, Chris Lynch and the rest of their teammates on the Walsh University men’s soccer team.

Bly and Lynch are Bellbrook High School graduates. Bly is a junior forward with five goals and two assists this season. Lynch is a sophomore midfielder with three goals and an assist. Their play as been instrumental in Walsh — located in Canton in the northeastern part of the state — winning the American Mideast Conference title.

It is the first men’s soccer title for the university since 1994. Going into this week, Walsh was 14-1-0 and had a 9-0-0 AMC record. Most years that record would earn a team a place in the top 25 ratings. This season, however, is different for Walsh and dozen other of the state’s small schools. They are moving from NAIA affiliation to joining the NCAA at the Division II level. That transition includes a three-year probationary period that leaves the schools persona non grata went it comes to national rankings or postseason play.

They can’t be ranked in either the NCAA or NAIA. There is no postseason conference tournament or invitation to play to the national playoffs.

There will be no individual awards beyond all-conference should Bly and Lynch earn that honor.

This is the second year of the three-year probationary period. When Walsh becomes NCAA D-II it will play in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, which includes Ohio schools Findlay, Tiffin, Ashland, Lake Eric and Ohio Dominican.

Alyanak captures Columbus Marathon

Bellbrook resident Ann Alyanak — the area’s best female distance runner — won her first marathon Oct. 15 by taking first in the Columbus Marathon. Her winning time for the 26.2 miles was 2:41.53.

“It was a great feeling and I was excited about winning,” she said. “It’s a great accomplishment. But at the same I was disappointed because I was hoping to run 2:39, which is the A Standard for the U.S. Women’s Olympic Marathon Trails.

“I went out a little too fast. I was hoping to catch up with some men to run with around the 18-mile mark, but never did. Fatigue set in the last few miles even though I pushed as hard as I could.”

Hitting the A Standard would have given the former University of Dayton cross country coach an all-expenses paid trip to the Olympic Marathon Trials Jan. 14 in Houston. She was seventh in the 2008 Olympic Marathon Trials in Boston.

“I’m putting in around 100 miles a week, mostly on the roads in our neighborhood or at the Sugar Creek Reserve,” she said. “I’ll back off for a couple weeks to recover and then hit it hard getting ready for Houston.”

Alyanak has been competing mostly in road races and has been on several U.S. national teams the past few years. Her husband, Eddie, is also a runner, specializing in triathlons.

“I did one triathlon with him and that was enough,” she said. “I’ll stick with the distances and taking care of our son (2-year old Eddie).

Bellbrook second in SWBL meet

The Bellbrook girls took second in the Southwestern Buckeye League middle school cross country meet Oct. 15 at Sebald Park in Middletown.

They had 53 points to 33 for first-place Oakwood. Alexandra Contestable was their top runner, coming in fourth place while Madison Pelfrey was eighth.

The SWBL boys middle school meet had a major malfunction. The first 30 runners were sent the wrong way at the start of the race. After the first mile, officials figured out there was a problem and called everyone back to the starting line. There was a lot of confusion, anger and finger-pointing before the race was cancelled.

Bellbrook middle school athletic director Jeff Eckley said there is little interest among SWBL middle-school coaches and ADs in staging the race a second time.

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