Norwalk falls in Div. III sectional match

ST. MARYS — The Norwalk boys soccer team saw their season end with a 3-1 loss at St. Marys Memorial in a Division III sectional semifinal on Monday. The Truckers trailed 1-0 at halftime, but were outscored 2-1 in the second half. Noah Jameson scored the lone goal for the Truckers off an assist from Kingston Gonzales. Abe Linder made nine saves at goalkeeper. In the Tiffin district, the No. 2-seeded Roughriders (13-2-3) advanced to Thursday's sectional championship match, which they will host against No. 7 Ontario (9-6-1). Norwalk finished with a 10-7 record overall. With six seniors, the Truckers were 9-2 in the Sandusky Bay Conference behind Edison (16-0-1, 10-0-1) and Perkins (16-0-3, 10-0-1). "We have some big shoes to fill," Norwalk head coach Chris Schnell said. "Elliot Gahring was our leading scorer this season. Watching him play, it is really hard to believe this is only his second season playing soccer since rec ball. Corbin Sigg was a vital piece of our defensive line. "Abe does not get seven shutouts without Corbin anchoring that back line," he added. "Casey Kromer and Evan Epperley were first-year players that gave us valuable minutes. Frankie Dolce was another player who really stepped up for us this season. I found myself putting him in multiple different positions on the field and he did very well in all of them." Schnell noted senior Landon Ferkel will soon be a four-year selection to the All-SBC teams. "Landon will be a huge loss for us," he said. "He was a captain this year. It is very hard to find a player who works harder than Landon. "I am really hoping our younger players took the chance to watch and learn from him these past few years. He is a prime example of the kind of player and the kind of leader those younger players should strive to become." Despite replacing nine seniors from 2024, Norwalk still posted its 23rd season of 10-plus wins in the 34-year history of the program. "That is the standard here at Norwalk," Schnell said. "It was a good season, and to hit that mark after replacing nine seniors, including seven who started, was a big ask for our boys this season. But they were up for the challenge. We had some players step up in a big way." Schnell noted that Johan Ramos was a junior varsity goalkeeper in 2024. This season, he was a team captain. Freshman Noah Jameson scored eight goals this season. "He turned into a player we had to have in the midfield," Schnell said."Noah Jameson came in as a freshman and had an immediate impact. He is going to be a problem for other teams in the years to come. "Abe started almost every game in goal as a freshman," he added. "He had a really good year with seven shutouts. Even with losing those six seniors, we have a strong junior class and we should come back very strong next season. We will be ready to compete for a conference title and more postseason wins next season." VOLLEYBALL Willard 3, Shelby 0 WILLARD — The Crimson Flashes closed out their regular season with a three-set win over rival Shelby Monday night. Willard — which received votes in the final OHSVCA state poll in Division V — finished with a 19-3 overall record after beating the Whippets by scores of 25-20, 26-24, and 25-17. "It was good to get a match in this week and not have a long layover before starting tournament on Thursday," Willard head coach Ashley Bond said. "We will take these two days of practice to clean some things up and be ready to go for the postseason." Natalie Slone finished with 13 kills, three blocks and six digs for Willard. Camryn Wiers had five kills, 10 assists, 11 digs, and served 14-for-15 with five aces. Leah Weiss had six kills, four blocks, 10 digs, and served 15-for-17 with three aces. Also for the Flashes, Emelia Tallman was 18-for-19 serving with nine assists, and Alexis Rettig was 11-for-11 with two aces and had 10 digs. Teagan Schaffer added four kills and three blocks, while Mya Stephens had seven assists and Paige Adams added three blocks. "We did a good job in the first set of not getting rattled and just slowly fighting our way back in it," Bond said. "I liked the composure we showed in the end of the second set after we allowed them to come back after we had reached 20 points. "Alexis does a great job of handling pressure serving and she did that once again tonight." The No. 1 seed in the Kalida district, Willard hosts Clear Fork (7-15) at 6 p.m.m Thursday in a sectional title game. Edison (9-13) takes on Western Reserve (13-9) at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, and the winners of the two matches will meet in a district semifinal on Oct. 21 at Seneca East High School.