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VINCENT -- Warren (11-7-1) is headed back where it belongs, to the district semifinals.
While the Warriors now must face Fairfield Union in that contest, this one against Circleville saw the home side strike early and often in a 4-0 sectional championship victory. WHS took advantage of aggressive play early on, and corner kicks from Alysa Pinkerton found the mark more times than not. Pinkerton's first strike found Sophie Cochran, and Cochran made good on the delivery by shooting a shot past Circleville's Kylie McCain 32 seconds into the match.
Being able to score before heavy rainfall soaked the Warren High School football field turf was of the utmost importance, and Warren kept the pressure on with rain on the way. With the sun still shining, Alexis Frazee was the next one to score off a Pinkerton corner kick in the 20th minute. Head coach Andy Pinkerton talked about his team's approach and how it led to the victory.
"We got off to a fast start. We scored the first one in 32 seconds off of a corner kick," he said. "We were all on the same page for the first time in a couple game, which was beautiful to see. We scored off of three corner kicks and a transition where we did a quick counterattack. We put together a tremendous first half, and we kind of used up all our energy to where our counter-attacking was a little slow in the second half, but we were able to keep possession and the pressure out of our backfield."
Frazee was fed off her teammate Pinkerton's corner kick one more time and buried an attempt going from right to left past McCain for her second tally of the match.
Cochran wasn't far behind her for another goal of her own.
Cochran scored her second goal with 38 seconds remaining in the half, as the Tigers dug themselves into an even bigger hole. Both Cochran and Frazee talked about how it felt to survive and advance once again, even with the Fairfield Union looming large.
"It absolutely feels amazing," Frazee said. "We've been working our butts off all season long, and we're just trying to focus on the next game by not looking too far ahead. We're not going to look back on last year (against Fairfield Union). We're just going to focus on this year. We're going to give it our all."
Cochran shared a similar sentiment, adding the circumstances of playing during an uncertain year make this victory more special than usual. It's the third year both players have been a part of a sectional title team.
"It feels pretty awesome. I'm just glad we're going on to the next one and moving on," she said. "It's amazing, and it's a great feeling. I think (playing through uncertainty) really does make this better."
Coach Pinkerton is already prepping for FUHS in a match where anything can happen.
"It's great to be able to do this with this group, because COVID and injuries have made it truly an up and down season," he said. "We have several goals who have high motors, and they lead by example and try to be in the right position. Alysa Pinkerton had four assists and Macie Smith did a great job facilitating. Those girls have been together for 6-7 years with club ball added on to the high school ball, so they're very comfortable together. (Fairfield Union) will be a rematch of the district semifinals from last year. We know we have the talent to be able to compete with them. We know they're a tremendous team, and we played with them in one of the early games here. They beat us 3-2, but we know it's going to be a tough game. We know we're going to have to rise to the occasion."
Circleville's season ends at 13-5-1where most of the team's core returns for a run in 2022. As for top-seeded Fairfield Union (14-3-1), it welcomes Warren after narrowly escaping five-win Athens 2-1 in the other sectional final.
Contact Josh Hughes at jhughes@newsanddsentinel.com