Here are Sweet 16 teams, players to watch for the OHSAA regional soccer tournaments
The Ohio High School Athletic Association soccer playoffs are down to the Sweet 16 in each division.
The regional tournaments take place this week, with all the regional champions advancing to next week’s state semifinals. The state championship is Nov. 10-11 at the Historic Crew Stadium in Columbus, the building formerly known as MAPFRE Stadium where the Major League Soccer franchise used to play.
Here is a look at the regional brackets involving Southwest Ohio teams.
Boys soccer
Division I
In Wednesday’s 7 p.m. Region 4 semifinals, Moeller (21-0) will face Centerville (15-2-3), while Anderson (12-6-1) will face St. Xavier (13-5-1). The winners play in the regional final at 7 p.m. at St. Xavier.
Moeller survived its biggest and most important challenge of the season in the district final, beating Beavercreek in overtime, 1-0. The Crusaders, ranked first in the state in the Ohio Scholastic Soccer Coaches Association poll, have won their last 20 games by shutout.
More: Moeller soccer holds opponents to 1 goal ... all season.
They have already broken the state record for consecutive shutouts, and need one more to break Centerville’s 38-year-old record for total shutouts in a season.
That task won’t be easy against the tournament-tested Elks, who have outscored foes 76-14 this year. Centerville, ranked 10th in the state, beat Beavercreek 1-0 on Sept. 12. The Elks lost 1-0 to St. Xavier on Oct. 7 and won 1-0 on Sept. 9 over Kentucky power Louisville St. Xavier, which won a state championship last weekend.
Moeller beat the Elks in overtime in last year’s regional semis. Senior Bradley Poppell, who scored the winning goal against Beavercreek, has 22 goals and four assists. Junior John Michel has 10 goals and nine assists. Senior Mason Cooper has four goals and 20 assists.
The St. Xavier Bombers are ranked ninth in the state. Two of their losses are to Moeller by 1-0 and 2-0 scores. St. X beat Anderson 3-2 in the season opener Aug. 16. St. X has won nine of 10 overall, giving up seven goals in that span.
In recent playoff history, St. X made the state semis in 2020 and lost to Centerville in the regional final in 2021.
Senior Ty Reilly leads the Bombers with 12 goals and six assists.
Anderson last made a regional final in 2017 and has lost to Centerville in the postseason the last two seasons. The Eastern Cincinnati Conference co-champions have allowed 20 goals this season. They are led on offense by senior Jason Tiesman with 12 goals and eight assists.
Anderson last beat St. X in 2019 and the teams drew 2-2 in 2021.
Division II
Summit Country Day (14-5) will play Indian Hill (18-1-1) in the Region 8 semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at St. Xavier. The winner faces either Tippecanoe (18-1-1) or Jonathan Alder (13-3-3) at noon Saturday at Centerville in the regional final.
The local semi is a heavyweight battle, as Summit is ranked third in the state and Indian Hill fifth. The Silver Knights won at home against the Braves 1-0 on Sept. 23.
Five of Summit’s losses are to Division I schools and the other to a Pennsylvania team. SCD has won seven of nine overall, all by shutout.
Senior Izzy Rawlings leads the offense with 11 goals and six assists. The Silver Knights have outscored teams, 45-18.
The SCD game was the Braves’ only loss. They have won nine straight games, all by shutout, and 12 of 13 overall. IH has allowed only eight goals all year, four of them to Carroll in a 5-4 win.
The Braves have scored 76, 22 by senior Gavin Johnson, who has nine assists. Junior Connor Wilkes has 16 goals and 20 assists.
Tippecanoe is ranked fourth in the state. The Red Devils’ only loss is to Summit, 3-1 on Aug. 26, and their draw is with Indian Hill, 1-1 on Sept. 9. Tippecanoe has outscored foes 108-10 this season. The Red Devils have three players with 16 goals or more.
The Alder Pioneers are 13-3-3 and have outscored foes 80-20.
Division III
Seven Hills (17-2) and Mariemont (14-4-2) will play in the Region 12 semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Monroe. Waynesville (13-6-2) will play Columbus Tree of Life Christian (17-0-1) at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Bellbrook. The winners will play in the regional final at 1 p.m. Saturday at Roger Glass Stadium, Chaminade-Julienne’s home field in Dayton.
Seven Hills is ranked fourth in the state and Mariemont is 12th. The Stingers lost 3-1 to Mariemont on Aug. 19 and lost the other game to Division II rival Summit 2-1.
Seven Hills has outscored its foes, 69-15. Junior Everett Rinaldi has 22 goals and 23 assists. Senior Leo Weller has 23 goals and 10 assists. Seven Hills last advanced to a regional final in 2019.
Mariemont is led by junior Max Murphy with 20 goals and 11 assists. The Warriors have scored 62 goals and allowed 13. The Warriors won the state championship in 2020 with a 23-0 record and lost in the regional semis the last two seasons.
Waynesville won its first district championship since 2001 and has won all four of its postseason games by shutout. The Spartans have outscored their foes, 88-25. Sophomore Nick Feldhaus has 25 goals and 15 assists. Junior Noah Kazmierski has 17 goals and 16 assists. Junior Wade Von Handorf has 16 goals and four assists.
The Trojans from Columbus are ranked ninth in the state. They have not played any Cincinnati teams.
Girls soccer
Division I
Region 4 should be tightly contested this week.
Mount Notre Dame (10-1-8) and Milford (16-0-4) will play in one Region 4 semifinal at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Princeton while reigning state champion Seton (15-3-3) will face Centerville (15-3-2) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Chaminade-Julienne’s Roger Glass Stadium in Dayton. The winners play in the regional final at 5 p.m. Saturday at Lakota East.
Milford is ranked second in the state. Centerville is sixth and Seton is 15th.
MND, the 2021 state champs, beat Oak Hills 1-0 in the district final. The Cougars and Eagles drew 2-2 on Sept. 9 in Reading.
MND has outscored foes 36-12. Senior Avery May has 12 goals and eight assists.
Seton has outscored teams, 90-18. Seniors Kenzie Carle, Millie Cluxton and Ava Glahn have all scored 15 goals or more. Cluxton has a team-high 20 assists and Carle, 15. Seton lost to Centerville 2-1 on Oct. 7, and Centerville had a scoreless draw with MND on Oct. 14.
MND and Seton split their two games, each winning 3-2. Seton and Milford tied 3-3 on Oct. 5.
Milford has outscored foes, 70-17. Senior Ana Manning has 25 goals and four assists, and senior Peyton Smith has 17 goals and 12 assists.
Division II
Badin and Summit Country Day (16-1-3) will play in one Region 8 semifinal at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Lakota East. Defending state runner-up Waynesville (18-0-1) will play Bloom-Carroll (18-1-2) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Centerville. The winners will tentatively play at 2 p.m. Saturday at Bellbrook.
Waynesville is the top-ranked team in the state, and Summit is second. Waynesville beat Summit in last year’s regional final.
Summit has one loss, to Division I St. Ursula, and a tie with defending DI state champ Seton. SCD has allowed only eight goals all season and scored 67. The Silver Knights have three players in double figures in goals, led by senior Maggie McDowell with 15.
Summit beat Badin 1-0 in the season opener Aug. 16. Badin went to the regional finals in 2021.
Senior Morgan Creech leads the Rams with 15 goals and nine assists. Sophomore Braelyn Even has 10 goals and 14 assists.
Waynesville, led by Xavier commit Samantha Erbach, has outscored foes, 130-16. The draw is 1-1 against Summit Sept. 21, and the Spartans have not played Badin.
Erbach has 41 goals and 24 assists. Senior Brooke Woody had 30 goals and eight assists. Baylee Williams and Chloe Dunford are in double digits in goals, and Dunford has a team-high 15 assists, one of five players with double digits in helpers.
Bloom-Carroll has not lost since Aug. 28, with 16 wins and a draw since then. The Bulldogs from south of Columbus have outscored foes 117-14.
Division III
Defending state champion Cincinnati Country Day (18-2) is in Region 11, and will play Grandview Heights (15-3-2) 7 p.m. Tuesday at Beavercreek. A win puts the Nighthawks in the regional final 12 p.m. Saturday at Chillicothe against either Lynchburg-Clay (14-0-4) or Leesburg Fairfield (15-3-1).
CCD is ranked first in the state. Lynchburg-Clay is sixth and Grandview Heights 11th.
Grandview Heights has beaten Mariemont 3-1 and tied Lynchburg-Clay 2-2.
CCD has overwhelmed foes 101-17 with its senior trio of offensive stars leading the way. Elizabeth Zimmerman has 26 goals and 28 assists. Sister Megan Zimmerman has 22 goals and 14 assists. Piper Farris has 22 goals and 20 assists.
CCD’s only losses are top DII rivals Waynesville (5-3) and Summit Country Day (1-0).
In Region 12, Madeira (10-5-4) will face Kalida (10-5-4) in one semi at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Wapakoneta. Mariemont (11-6-2) will face West Liberty-Salem (19-0) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Loveland. The winners will play for the title at 1 p.m. Saturday at Beavercreek.
Madeira is ninth in the state and Mariemont, 15th. West Liberty-Salem is fourth.
Kalida has scored only 39 goals but allowed only 17.
Mariemont’s opponent is 19-0 and has outscored foes 103-6. The Tigers have played one Cincinnati team, beating Clermont Northeastern 2-0.
Madeira also beat CNE, 2-0. The Amazons were Cincinnati Hills League champions and have outscored foes, 57-25. Anna Cornejo leads the offense with 19 goals and 16 assists.
Mariemont finished fifth in the CHL but has won five of six, including three postseason foes by a total of 15-3. The Warriors have three players in double figures in goals.
The Region 11 and 12 champions will play next Tuesday in the state semifinals.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio high school soccer: Cincinnati's Sweet 16 players, teams to watch
