St. Charles is going back to the state tournament for the fourth year in a row — and this time the Cardinals’ road to the final runs straight through a familiar neighbor. St. Charles beat Olentangy Orange 3-2 in an OHSAA Division I regional final on Sunday, November 8, according to The Columbus Dispatch, setting up an all-central Ohio state semifinal against defending state champion Dublin Jerome.
Jerome earned its place the same afternoon, beating Cincinnati Sycamore 3-2 in its regional final, The Columbus Dispatch reported. The Celtics, 18-2-1, will face St. Charles, 17-3-1, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, November 11, at Olentangy, with the winner advancing to the Division I state final at 7 p.m. Sunday, November 15, at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in Columbus.
Because both semifinalists are central Ohio programs, the area is already guaranteed at least one team in the Division I final, The Columbus Dispatch noted. The other Division I semifinal pairs Strongsville (17-1-2) against Kettering Fairmont (13-5-3) at Westerville Central, also at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
St. Charles and Jerome were two of six central Ohio boys teams to reach the state tournament on Sunday. New Albany advanced in Division II with a 2-1 win over Westerville North, Watterson — another defending state champion — routed Bexley 4-0 in Division III, Worthington Christian beat Findlay Liberty-Benton 2-1 in Division IV, and Fairbanks topped Berlin Hiland 4-1 in Division V, according to The Columbus Dispatch’s regional-final roundup.
For St. Charles, a fourth consecutive state tournament appearance marks the program as one of Ohio’s most consistent — reaching the final four once is a season to remember; doing it four straight years means the expectation inside the program has changed from hoping to belong to expecting to be playing in mid-November.
Orange’s season ends one win short of the state tournament after a regional final decided by a single goal — the second straight Sunday of regional soccer in which central Ohio’s depth showed, with six programs across five divisions still alive.
What happens next: St. Charles and Dublin Jerome meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday, November 11, at Olentangy for a place in the Division I state championship game on November 15 at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field. NewsForce247 will have the semifinal result Wednesday night.
Photo: Matthew Bernhardt, CC BY-SA