Dublin Jerome's girls soccer team beat Reynoldsburg 8-0 on Thursday, Oct. 22, in the OHSAA Division I district semifinal.
The No. 2-seeded Celtics scored eight goals against the No. 26 Raiders in the Central 3 bracket, according to the OHSAA tournament bracket. It was the largest margin of victory in the bracket's opening round. No. 17 Worthington Kilbourne edged No. 16 Westerville North 2-1 in the other semifinal Thursday, Oct. 22.
The shutout fit a pattern. Jerome allowed just nine goals across 14 regular-season games, Cleveland.com reported in its statewide Top 20 rankings published Oct. 19. The Celtics entered the postseason ranked No. 8 in the state with a 12-2 record.
Jerome closed the regular season on a four-game winning streak, capped by a 2-0 shutout of Big Walnut on Oct. 13. The defense carried that form into the playoffs, holding Reynoldsburg scoreless.
District final Thursday
Jerome will host Kilbourne in the Central 3 district final at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29. The bracket designates the higher seed as the home team, putting the Celtics on their own field.
The stakes are clear. The district champion earns a spot in the Region 1 tournament, opening Tuesday, Nov. 3. The winner would face the Central 5 district champion at a neutral site as the designated home team in that regional round.
Beyond regionals, the state tournament path runs through the semifinals Nov. 10-11 and the Division I girls state final at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in Columbus on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 1 p.m., according to a Cleveland.com schedule breakdown.
Kickoff for the district final against Kilbourne is 7 p.m. Oct. 29 at Jerome.
