Ottoville’s Haley Horstman dribbles against Delphos Jefferson’s Claire Stokes during Tuesday’s match in Ottoville.
Richard Parrish | The Lima News
OTTOVILLE — At this time last week, Lily Smith wasn’t the starting keeper for Delphos Jefferson.
But the Wildcats (4-4) needed Smith to step into that role on Tuesday night, and she responded by making seven saves and helping her team hold on to a 3-2 victory over Ottoville.
Delphos Jefferson coach Megan Etzkorn moved Smith into the box after her first two keepers went down on Saturday.
“We had tryouts last night to find out who would be our third-string goalie,” she said. “We came in tonight with nothing to lose, so it was exciting to see the girls play hard the whole game.
“We just wanted her (Smith) to handle the situation for what it was. She’s a junior and she stepped up because the role needed to be filled, and she did a pretty good job at it.”
Smith and the Wildcats shut Ottoville out in the first half and held a 1-0 lead thanks to a nifty pass from Aubrey Dudgeon to Kyah Kimmet, who scored the ball at the 22:44 mark.
Shortly after halftime, however, things got interesting.
The two teams combined for three goals in just under 90 seconds.
Ottoville (3-4) tied things up on a goal from Karlee Horstman (38:35) but 27 seconds later, Kimmet fired her second goal of the game into the back of the net.
Less than a minute later, Dudgeon caught the Ottoville defense on its heels again and gave Delphos Jefferson a 3-1 lead with 37:09 left.
The speed of Kimmet and Dudgeon helped the Wildcats get 11 shots on goal, compared to nine from Ottovile.
“We talk a lot about using our speed to get down there, but it’s all about what you do when you get down there,” Etzkorn said. “She (Kyah) is starting to cut back a lot more and come across the goal to look for the shots. It all seems like it’s coming together for her.”
Ottoville netted the final goal of the game with 1:26 left on one of its eight corner kicks when Morgan Hoersten found Haley Horstman. Keeper Ella Druckmiller made eight saves in the loss.
Delphos Jefferson 3, Ottoville 2
DJ 1 2 – 3
OV 0 2 – 2
Scoring Summary
DJ — Kyah Kimmet (Aubrey Dudgeon assist) — 22:44, 1st
OV — Karlee Horstman, 38:35 — 2nd
DJ — Kyah Kimmet, 38:08 — 2nd
DJ — Aubrey Dudgeon, 37:09 — 2nd
OV — Haley Horstman (Morgan Hoersten assist) — 1:26, 2nd
Shots on goal
DJ 11, OV 9
Corner kicks
DJ 6, OV 8
Saves
DJ 7, OV 8
Goal kicks
DJ 10, OV 11
Free kicks
DJ 3, OV 5
Reach Chris Howell at 567-242-0468 or on Twitter/X at @Lima_Howell
