Edison wins first district championship

SYLVANIA — Edison's boys soccer made some satisfying history Saturday. The Chargers shut out Delta 6-0 in a Division IV district championship match at Sylvania Southview to win the program's first district title. In the process, senior star Alex Davidson scored his 100th career goal. Need more superlatives to illustrate just how good the Chargers' season is going? OK, how about 160 goals scored and only 13 allowed in 20 matches? "One of the better feelings I've had in my life," Edison coach Nate Leimeister said. "Super proud of these kids. You can see the excitement, the pride, the families… it's an amazing feeling." The Chargers (19-0-1) took control with two goals in a lethal 15-second span midway the first half. Jose Serna Amaya got Edison on the board with a left-footed shot just inside the box at the 16:32 mark. "I saw Alex pass to me and saw the space between me and the defender and I didn't think about it twice," Serna Amaya said. "I took the shot and hoped it would go in. "It feels great. I'm a senior and always wanted to get here. We've made it the semifinals before. Being able to win a final for the first time in history feels great." Serna Amaya assisted on the Chargers' second goal, finding Carter Jones for a 2-0 lead at the 16:18 mark. Just like that, it went from a scoreless game to all Edison, which played loose and confident. "That felt good," Leimeister said. "We've played that way a lot this year, when once it broke open we were ready to go." Edison took a 3-0 lead into halftime when Max Welch headed in a corner kick from Gavyn Blackburn with 2:38 left in the half. Jones gave the Chargers a commanding 4-0 lead just two minutes into the second half. "He's a beast. He just battles," Leimeister said. "He's dropping back and playing defense, too. He's our striker, but he's relentless out there." With the game under control, it was Davidson's turn to make some history. He broke loose and made a run toward the goal and blasted a shot past Delta goalkeeper Peyton Winkler at the 8:20 mark for his 59th goal of the season and the 100th of his decorated career. "I was looking for that all night," Davidson said. "I was taking my chances and couldn't find one in the back of the net. It was on my right foot and I have a lot of confidence in my right foot. Honestly, in that type of situation it's going to go in the back of net. "It's a huge milestone. Just to get 100 today, I can't really describe it." Jones topped off the scoring barrage when he calmly headed in a ball that rebounded off the top of the goal with 6:01 to play. The talented sophomore finished with a hat trick to run his season total to 33 goals. "It came off the post and I saw I had the chance," Jones said. "The keeper was out of position. I tried just not to hit it over." Edison's defense did its job, too. Sophomore keeper Kaden Mees turned away a few decent Delta chances as the Chargers recorded their 12th shutout this season. "Kaden was pretty comfortable back there; there weren't too many shots on him," Leimeister said. "Our back three, they've been amazing all year. Trevor (Leimeister), Kellen (McDonnell) and Gabe (Serna Amaya), you could see their determination in keeping that ball away. Kaden does a great job keeping them away when they do get there." After a tight 2-1 win in the district semifinals in nasty weather against Upper Sandusky on Tuesday, Saturday's rout on a perfect, sunny day was Edison's reward. "After Tuesday when we battled against Upper Sandusky, 2-1 against a team we beat easier during the season, they were focused," Leimeister said. "They wanted to play our style of soccer and I think we did." Davidson said winning a district championship was "something we've looked forward to all season." "First time in school history," he said. "Dominant performance. Back line held up great — clean sheet. Jose and Carter did well on the ball and finished their chances and they couldn't have done anything else with the midfield. They locked it down." Edison will match up against a strong Liberty-Benton team in a regional semifinal at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Bowling Green High School. The Eagles (17-1-2) shut out Eastwood 8-0 in their district final Saturday. "Coach Denny (Palmer) was like, 'When do we play next and where?' " Leimeister said amid the post-match celebration. "I said I didn't know because I was so focused to get this. Now we're on to regionals. Next one up."