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St. C. girls move on to D-II district

Weidman records first shutout, Megan Malin notches game-winner

ST. CLAIRSVILLE’S Mikayla Hendershot (18) and Beaver Local’s Karlee Cannon chase the ball in first-half action Thursday night during their Division II Eastern District sectional final girls’ soccer game at Red Devil Stadium. The hosts prevailed, 2-0, and will host Tri-Valley on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in a district semifinal. St. Clairsville’s Emily Thompson (9) looks on.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — The adage ‘next player up’ was never more evident than on Thursday night.

With leading scorer Macy Malin (60 career goals) and standout goalkeeper Jaeda Nowak (33 career shutouts) both watching from the sidelines with injuries, someone had to step up as St. Clairsville opened postseason play against rival Beaver Local.

That someone turned out to be two players as Megan Malin recorded her first career game-winning goal while Kellen Weidman stopped all eight shots she faced as the Red Devils (10-5-1) bounced the Beavers (3-8-4) by a 2-0 count in a Division II sectional final on the artificial surface inside Red Devil Stadium.

“The first goal is always huge because it kind of allows you to steal the momentum away a little bit,” St. Clairsville head coach Wes Stoner said. “But Beaver never slowed down. They kept attacking. That’s what they do.”

Megan Malin, Macy’s younger sister, gave Weidman all the offensive support she would need when she found the net early in the 15th minute. Stationed in front of the net as teammate Alyssa Bodkin sent a corner kick sailing towards a scrum of players, the ball somehow found its way onto the right foot of Malin who zipped it into the net.

“It was really important,” she said of scoring the first goal. “She (Macy) doesn’t get to play this season, so it like taking her place almost.”

The fourth-seeded Red Devils made it 2-0 in the 35th minute as Bodkin took a feed from Ariel Ott and dribbled down the middle of the field before unleashing a blast that found its way through Beaver Local goalkeeper Hailey Russell.

“I hate a 2-0 lead because it’s been said it is the most dangerous lead in sports because the winning team tends to relax a little bit,” Stoner added. “I wanted a third (goal), but we defended really well and that kept the pressure off of Kellen.”

Weidman has been a jack-of-all-trades during her career.

“She’s a great kid. Selfless. She will play wherever we need her,” Stoner noted. “She’s played defense, a little bit of defensive midfield and now, obviously, goalie. With her it’s all about helping her teammates out however she can.”

As good athletes do, Weidman deflected the attention to her teammates.

“I’ve played goalie before, so I wasn’t that worried,” Weidman admitted. “I had faith in my defense that they would allow me to have an easy game.”

The three-year letterwinner wasn’t seriously threatened in the match.

She did credit Nowak with helping her during practice leading up to the game.

“She helped me a lot. Whenever I had a question I wouldn’t hesitate to ask her ‘what do I do here?’ and she would explain whatever it was to me. She really helped me a lot.”

Nowak, who injured a shoulder 10 days ago against Oak Glen, had never missed a start in her four-year career until last night. She established a school single-game record for saves with 19 in a loss at Wheeling Park. She also has a school-record 44 wins. According to reports, Nowak is expected to be between the pipes Tuesday against Tri-Valley, which ousted Philo last night.

“I don’t think we found our opportunities in the first half like we did the second half,” Beaver Local head coach Elizabeth Conner said. “We definitely put more pressure on them, had shots and I thought the majority of the possessions, but we weren’t able to find the back of the net tonight. “

Russell was credited with 10 saves.

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