Bulldogs win big over Wildcats

CELINA - Celina coach Eric Gerker wanted to see the Bulldogs take control early, and they did just that.

Celina went up 3-0 in the first 15 minutes and never looked back for a 8-2 win over Kenton in a Western Buckeye League girls soccer match at the soccer stadium on Monday.

"We wanted to come out and establish ourselves: our possession game, really attacking their back line," Gerker said. "We wanted to utilize our speed to our advantage to start out."

Celina (5-3, 2-1 WBL) dominated possession early, taking two shots on goal in the first 2 1/2 minutes, and Taylor Klingshirn broke through on a pass from Raven Harris to the right side. Klingshirn fired a shot back the other way past diving keeper Ruby Styer to make it 1-0 Bulldogs with 33:05 left in the half.

Just over three minutes later, Isabel Duenas made a run down the right side and passed to the middle, where Kira Dirksen put the ball in the top right corner for another score. Duenas tallied her first goal three minutes later, added an assist on Klingshirn's second score, then put a shot over Styer's hand with 8:22 remaining to put Kenton (6-3, 1-2 WBL) in a 5-1 hole going into the half.

"The last three or four games now, she's really doing a good job of putting the ball in the back of the net, and then she's also getting Dirksen and Klingshirn and Holstad involved," Gerker said of Duenas. "Her speed's getting her some goals, but it's also setting up everybody else."

Kenton's only sustained attack came with 19 minutes to go in the half, with two quick shots on goal. Abigail Schmelzer put the Wildcats on the board with 17:48 to go, chipping a long shot over Reilly Seitz in goal.

But those were the only shots the Bulldogs allowed in the first half. Kenton's Abi Temple got free on a breakaway in the first minute of the second half, but Seitz made the save and Ellie Hitchcock cleared out the rebound.

"Our two in the back, Felver and Hitchcock, we stressed to them, keep communicating," Gerker said "Know where 23, Temple, is at all times. If she's on the outside, we'll have Veit mark her up, if she's roaming around the middle, drop a couple center backs - either Burns or Garrity or Hathaway or Jacobs, whoever's in there playing - drop back and give support so that we always have somebody on her."

The Bulldogs stretched the margin to five early in the second half when a Kenton defender knocked Dirksen's pass into the net for an own goal. A minute later, Duenas scored her third, taking a pass from Klingshirn and burying it in the top left over a charging Styer.

Kenlee Holstad added the final Celina goal from the edge of the box with 16:32 to play. Temple struck home on a long shot from the right side with 7:11 left, but it was too little, too late.

"Everybody's doing a good job of utilizing our speed," Gerker said. "I thought Kira played a great game today too, and Taylor. We're very, very strong up front in our attack."

Celina, winner of two straight, gets right back into the WBL schedule when Elida comes to town on Thursday.