Madison finishes fine season as girls soccer state runner-up

COLUMBUS — The Madison girls soccer team ran into royalty at the Division II girls state soccer championship game.

The 2nd-ranked Rams fell 2-0 to No. 1-ranked Kettering Alter on Saturday at Mapfre Stadium in Columbus, home of the Crew. It marked the Knights second state championship in four years, and continued a 22-game unbeaten streak for coach Javier Iriart’s perennial state powerhouse.

“This is a testament to our team,” Iriart said. “We stayed together (after losing the 3-1 season opener to Centerville). Our seniors had a mission to get back here and they accomplished it.”

Madison (18-2-4) claimed the state runner-up trophy, the best finish in program history.

“For the last 10 years I came down here, sometimes by myself, and this time I got to bring my girls and coach,” said Rams bench boss Zac Huff. “Our girls were tough as nails. They never said die. Even with five minutes left we were still playing, still had a chance.”

Both teams began with high energy and a fast pace. It appeared to be an even match until Knights’ captain Lauren Schimpf fired an unassisted shot from more than 25 yards out, the ball picked up wicked spin as it approached the goal, and dribbled off the hands of Madison keeper Morgan Rachel and into the goal.

It was a difficult break in an otherwise fine performance for Rachel, who registered four saves.

“That’s tough,” Huff said. “She made some great saves today, too.”

That goal came with 12:31 remaining in the first half, and changed the tenor of the contest. Alter (21-1-1) played with more confidence from that point forward, and Madison seemed to feel the pressure.

“Usually we’re the ones who score first,” Madison’s junior All-Ohioan Taylor Huff said. “But we had our chances, too.”

That scenario is precisely what Alter was seeking. The Knights then turned to their incredible defense, which allowed just nine goals all season and only one in seven tournament games.

“That first goal made them have to chase a little bit,” Iriart said. “We identified that they weren’t as strong going to their left, and tilted them a little bit that way.

“(Taylor Huff) is a great player, and we decided to let her drive a little bit until we could get a couple of players around her to stop her.”

Indeed, Huff is a three-time All-Ohioan who has 99 career goals. She took six shots Saturday, three of them on goal — half of her team’s total. One hit the crossbar, another was knocked up and over the net on a fine save by Alter keeper Kassidey Roshong, who finished with six saves.

It just wasn’t the Rams’ day.

“They had their opportunities and took advantage of a couple of them, and we didn’t,” Zac Huff said. “That was the (story of the) game.”

The clinching goal came when Knights’ junior forward Nora Tyra finished a 2-on-1 break by taking a pass from Anna Sweeney and splitting the posts with 16:43 remaining in the match.

Madison moved into desperation mode then, shifting their All-Ohioan into several different positions, but Alter consistently had a defensive answer.

“It was just crazy to get here,” Taylor Huff said. “They really spread the field out and we were just a second off or a second late all day. But I feel blessed to have gotten here.”

Madison returns 11 juniors, including Huff, in what shapes up to be a promising season in 2020, too.

“They’re a fantastic team,” Iriart said. “They have a good sense of moving the ball well.”