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Sports

Lady Spartans Fall in State Soccer Semifinals

Paideia advanced to the state championship with a 5-0 victory at Athens Academy on Tuesday.

Athens Academy’s girls soccer team made its second straight trip the state semifinals on Tuesday. But the Lady Spartans ran into a team that hadn’t been scored on since March 21.

Combine that with the Spartans losing a third senior to a season-ending injury midway through the game, and Paideia advanced to the state championship with a 5-0 victory at .

This was the second straight appearance in the final four for the Lady Spartans (14-6-1), who lost to Blessed Trinity last season. They arrived in this round after wins over Brookstone, 3-2, and Holy Innocents’, 1-0. The Lady Spartans had won seven straight.

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Paideia (16-3), which has won 12 in a row and 14 of its last 15, advances to the state championship game on Friday against the winner of First Presbyterian Day and Fellowship Christian.

“We had some chances, not great chances, and we didn’t finish them,” Pythons coach Carl Rosenbaum said. “We were playing the way we like to play, on the ground, move it around, fortunately we got one.”

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The Pythons beat their previous playoffs opponents both 7-0, but Athens Academy coach Steve Stewart said Tuesday’s lopsided score wasn’t indicative of the game.

After Athens Academy withstood an offensive onslaught from Paideia in the game’s first 32 minutes, the Pythons broke through with header from Rose Sleppy. Then with 1:50 before halftime, Paideia added another goal by Madison Hafitz, who scored two goals in the game.

That caused Stewart to move goalkeeper Katlin Stephens up front to play a third forward position in the second half. But Stephens suffered a left knee injury less than three minutes into the second half, and was helped off of the field. 

“She’s a very good goalkeeper, but she’s also a good field player,” Stewart said. “She’s got some pace, and we brought her up there to try to put some pressure on them.”

The loss ended the season for eight Athens Academy seniors: Samantha Nickerson, Alex Knisely, Sarah Pylant, Stephens, Grace Finnan, Sarah Yoder, Kelley Williams and Ceci Crowe.

“We’ve got such a great group of seniors,” Stewart said. “Most of them started since they were freshmen. They’ve been a really solid class. That’s why I let Sammie play there at the end, even though she shouldn’t have, she’s got a high ankle sprain. She wanted to go on the field at least for a minute of her senior year.”

That class provided leadership for six freshmen who were on the field at the end of Tuesday’s game.

“All those kids have been here for a while, and been such a great group,” Stewart said. “They’ve held it together, got kids around them that are young, and now they have to pick it up.

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