Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
KINNIKINNICK — Fairfield Union wanted revenge, and the Falcons surely got just that on Saturday.
Having suffered a 4-2 regular season loss to Athens back on Aug. 19, they knew they had to start fast if they wanted to extend their season another week.
The Falcons did more than that. They dominated.
Fairfield Union (17-2-1) controlled every facet of the game, and overmatched the Bulldogs while earning a 3-0 victory — claiming the Falcons’ first district championship since 2016.
CREDIT: Brock Netter/SOSA
“From minute one, we came out aggressive and wanted to set the tone because Athens is a fantastic team,” Fairfield Union coach Jared Redding said. “We have 12 seniors on this team, so it’s important for us to give them as much as we can. That was part of the energy throughout the team. It was either the last game for those 12 or they could continue to play the game of soccer. And to be able to win a district and send them to regionals is something really special.”
Caleb Redding has been the Falcons’ table setter throughout the season. So naturally, the Falcons turned to him early.
He received the ball in the box, knocked it by a Bulldog defender and sent a rocket into the back of the net to put his team ahead 1-0 just three minutes in.
That goal set off a wave of energy throughout the Falcons’ roster, and they were ready to turn up the heat.
“Going up 1-0 that quickly was a goal of ours. We always want to score within the first 10 minutes to give us that energy,” Fairfield Union’s Caleb Redding said. “It put us in a really good position, the stands were going crazy and we fed off of that electricity.”
They had two shots later hit off the goalpost and another goal taken off the board due to an offsides call. But the next chance was good as gold.
Redding threw the ball into the box and it hit Caleb Schmelzer before bouncing to Will Worthington, who used his body to put it in the net for a 2-0 lead.
Minutes later, Parker Redding got in on the fun as he took a feed from Caleb Redding and connected, putting the Falcons ahead 3-0 at halftime.
“We got outmuscled in the matchup during the regular season, so we’ve been in the weight room ever since that game and we had to use that to our advantage,” Fairfield Union’s D.J. Spicer said. “Our communication from the beginning of the season to now has been so much better and it’s been a key factor as to why we’re winning games now.”
The offense did its job throughout the first half. Now all eyes were turning to the Falcons’ defense, understanding that Athens wasn’t going down without a fight.
The aggression stayed high on both sides of the ball but the Falcons continued to have an answer at every turn. Through-balls were getting deflected, they were packing it in inside the box, and Spicer was a human shield as the last line of defense.
“I’m so proud of my boys on the backline for how much better they’ve gotten and how much we’ve gelled as a defensive group,” Spicer said. “One of the reasons we lost the first time was that we couldn’t win a ball in the air to save our lives. And they did such an amazing job today of using their heads, getting the ball away and limiting Athens’ shots. We weren’t getting turned around on any fakes and they did such a great job.”
Athens (15-2-4) managed a goal on a penalty kick when Luca Roas-Clouse connected on the shot, but that was the only clean look the Bulldogs had on the night.
Fairfield Union returns to action in a Division II regional semifinal at 7 p.m., Wednesday at Chillicothe High School. The Falcons will get Marietta, who defeated Unioto by a 4-3 final to win a district title of its own.
On Sept. 2, Fairfield Union suffered a 3-0 loss to the Tigers. However, as Saturday’s game shows, prior losses shouldn’t matter. It’s now a win or go home situation.
“I yell, ‘Start hot’ before every game, and I feel like it drives us before the game starts. I’ve done it ever since we lost to Marietta,” Spicer said. “That’s going to be key on Wednesday. Starting fast and keeping the same type of energy that we did in this game from the first touch to the final buzzer.”
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