“I took the girls in the gym and showed them all the banners and the history of this program,” Brown said. “Dan Ludwick was the coach for 17 years and he really put Greeneview soccer on the map. The girls that are seniors now, the last championship was their freshmen year. They want to be able to come back to school after they graduate and see “2019” on that gym wall. They’re really working hard and training.”
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Greeneview entered the week 6-1 overall and 5-0 in the OHC. Key league wins against West Liberty-Salem (4-2) and Fairbanks (5-1) have given Greeneview the early advantage atop the standings. Fairbanks is ranked No. 6 in the Division III state poll. West Liberty-Salem was ranked No. 14 last week and dropped out of the poll this week.
Among the senior talent, Faith Rutherford leads the Rams with 12 goals, including the first two in the win against Fairbanks. Defender Brooklyn Langford has a flip throw-in that travels about 45 yards, which has led to several assists. Megan Clevenger and keeper Shelby Rutherford – who stopped a penalty kick against West Liberty-Salem – are also defensive standouts.
Mckyna Woods, who returns after taking the last two seasons off, has a booming goal kick of about 50 yards. Erika Ramey has a knack for winning balls out of the air and forms a tough midfield with Brooklyn Warner and Sam Spaller. Cassie Wheeler, Kaitlynn Hinkle, Lindsey Schrand and Audra Downing are also top contributors in the senior class.
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Juniors Alexa Simpson and Josie Farris contribute to the offensive attack and sophomore Ellie Snyder is a key defender.
The lone blemish was a 7-1 loss to 12th-ranked Waynesville that the Rams have rallied around.
“We’re using that game as motivation,” Brown said. “The kids are embarrassed about it. The kids know they have to show up and bring their best every game. Every season usually has a turning point. The kids are using the Waynesville game as that.”
The Rams aren’t underestimating their next few opponents, but the next biggest game on the schedule is Catholic Central on Oct. 3. That game should play a role in deciding the OHC championship.
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“All these kids are great kids,” Brown said. “It’s been a fun group to coach. … The goal in all the year’s I’ve coached is to create that environment where the kids can get along, enjoy themselves and hopefully have success in the win-loss column.”
• Taylor Sisco, a junior, has four goals and seven assists for the Tecumseh girls soccer team. Tecumseh (5-1-1) shares the Central Buckeye Conference Kenton Trail Division lead with Jonathan Alder, both at 3-0-0.
• Urbana senior Sam Tracy has eight goals and three assists and ranks No. 2 in CBC scoring. The Hillclimbers (5-0-1, 2-0-0) have a one-game CBC Mad River Division lead of Indian Lake and Northwestern.
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• West Liberty-Salem senior Ian Wolfe leads OHC boys soccer in scoring with 12 goals and two assists (26 points). Greenon junior Trent Green is No. 2 in scoring with nine goals and four assists (22 points).
• The massive Cedarville Friendship cross country invitational is from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday at the university. Graham also will hold a cross country invite on Saturday.
• Unbeaten Graham boys (10-0) are among the area teams that will play in the Springfield invite at Reid Golf Course on Wednesday. Graham is 8-0 in the CBC Mad River Division, good for a 1.5 lead over runner-up Ben Logan (6-2, 6-1).
• The Shawnee girls volleyball team (7-2) will take a seven-game win streak into Thursday’s match against visiting London. Shawnee has not lost since dropping a season-opening doubleheader to Lancaster and Maysville.
• Northwestern (8-1, 6-0) has a one-game lead over runner-up Kenton Ridge (8-2, 5-1) in CBC girls tennis. The Warriors have not lost since a season-opening setback to Greenville. That eight-game win streak will be put to the test against visiting Alter (7-2) on Wednesday.
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