'Our team never stops': Summit Country Day defeats Badin in Division II regional semifinal

At the beginning of the season, Summit Country Day sophomore Carolyn Federle had just two varsity goals to her name. A game-winner against Badin in the first game of the season gave her a third.

What she couldn't have imagined is that she would score 11 total goals as a sophomore, the latest being another game-winner against the Rams in the Division II regional semifinal.

"I just came in wanting to win and just help my team advance. I did not expect to get another game-winner," Federle said.

With a 3-1 win on Tuesday night at Lakota East, the Silver Knights advance to their second straight regional final.

"We knew it was going to be a physical game. We talked about wanting to start well and we did in both halves," Summit Country Day head coach Mike Fee said.

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The goal wasn't even Federle's first contribution of the night. Thanks to SCD's constant defensive pressure in the first three minutes, she found the ball at her feet in the penalty box. She crossed it to Bella Desmond who fired a shot just under the crossbar to open the scoring.

The goal felt like a dagger, even with 75 minutes to play. Battling the wind and cold, Badin couldn't quite string together enough possession to pose a threat. The Rams were called offside three times in the first half.

But they slowly let the game come to them. Five corner kicks, as well as a barrage of shots in the 23rd minute, gave them hope. Fifteen minutes later, senior Katie Singleton latched onto a through ball and beat the keeper for an open-net equalizer.

"You know, I thought once we equalized, the second half was going to be us," Badin head coach Chris Slusher said.

The second half played out in a similar fashion. Summit got another early goal and then Badin slowly gained momentum in the search for another equalizer. But the deficit stretched from one goal to two when Cameron Lorentz scored from a tight angle in the 67th minute to cement the final score.

Other than a first-half goal, the SCD defense stood tall when it mattered. Junior goalkeeper Maddie Mescher made two key saves in the final five minutes as the Rams continued to fight.

"It's hard to be a goalkeeper and she's only had eight goals against her all season," Fee said.

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A win summed in a word

The key to the Silver Knights' 11-match unbeaten streak and 28-3 scoring advantage in the postseason has been, in a word, relentlessness.

"Our team never stops, and I think that's one of the biggest reasons why we keep going and going and going," Federle said.

The front-line pressure they showed against Badin is the same tactic that has helped SCD shut out 14 of its 21 opponents. The back line of Linde Harris, Lily Martin, Bree Reder and Lilly Sievering deserve credit as well.

"Our defense is so good. Our center backs are so good," Fee said.

Senior shoutout

Badin's seven seniors compiled a 38-10-12 record in the last three seasons. Morgan Creech, Elsie Hamersky, Paige Harris, Ava Hess, Emma Rhodes, Katie Singleton and Madison Zorb won at least 10 games in each of their varsity seasons and helped the Rams reach the DII regional final as sophomores.

"We have a great senior class and they're going to do phenomenal things," Slusher said.

Despite starting this season with a 1-3-1 record, the Rams carried a 15-match unbeaten streak into Tuesday night's game.

What's next for Summit Country Day?

The Silver Knights will play Waynesville on Saturday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m. at Bellbrook Stadium. The Spartans are 19-0-1 and have outscored four postseason opponents by a similar margin of 28-3.

Summit and Waynesville battled to a 1-1 tie at Waynesville on Sept. 21. The goal scorers in that game were Mia Stevens (SCD) and Kyla Harvey (Waynesville).

Waynesville key player shines in big win

Samantha Erbach tied the Waynesville record for goals in a single game on Tuesday during the Spartans' game against Bloom-Carroll. The Xavier Univeristy commit scored six goals and had two assists to continue her standout senior year season.

Erbach was joined on the scoresheet by Brooke Woody and Kayann Whitt as Waynesville easily rolled past the Bulldogs to a decisive 9-2 win.

Kori Stewart contributed to this report.