'Gut-wrenching': St. Charles soccer loses OHSAA Division I state final in double overtime

11/11/2024

Ohio High School Athletic Association director of compliance Kristin Ronai was tasked with handing out the Division I boys soccer runner-up trophy after Sunday night’s state final at Historic Crew Stadium.

In her speech, Ronai made a point of mentioning that St. Charles asked for and was granted permission to compete in Division I this season after originally being assigned to Division II as part of the OHSAA’s tournament expansion.

The Cardinals got what they hoped for, reaching their first championship game since 2016, even if the end was agonizing.

With 1 second left in the second overtime, Cleveland St. Ignatius’ Bryce Ince-Lovelace worked around a St. Charles defender, snuck to the right of Cardinals goalie Aiden Rice and fired a shot into the upper corner of the net to give the Wildcats a 1-0 victory and their sixth consecutive title.

The Cardinals (13-4-4), who also lost to St. Ignatius 4-2 on Sept. 7, were outshot 28-12 but relied on strong defensive play and eight saves from Rice to come within an eyelash of taking the game to penalty kicks.

St. Charles was denied its first championship since 1985 and third all-time.

“We started shifting back more; we didn’t lose marks in the back and made sure we were accountable for each other and staying on our marks,” Cardinals senior defender Grant Brokaw said. “That helped a lot. They didn’t have many crosses in the box that they won. We were scrappy, won the second ball and got the clears.

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St. Charles Preparatory School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.