HIGH SCHOOL GIRLS SOCCER: TRI-VALLEY LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP

By Dean Russin

Star photo by Julie Lewis Milford’s Julia Brennan shoots ahead of Edmeston’s Nichole McGuinness during the first half of Saturday’s Tri-Valley League championship at the Wright National Soccer Campus.

Sports Editor

ONEONTA — Nothing settles a stomach quite like winning a league championship.

Sophomore goalie Chynna Pitlock fought off the nerves of competing in her first Tri-Valley League championship game Saturday, making eight saves as Milford beat Edmeston, 1-0.

"She knew what kind of game it was going to be," said Milford coach Lorin Campbell, whose team improved to 17-1 after winning its second straight T-V crown. "Honestly, she’s been so nervous, she’s been vomiting."

[an error occurred while processing this directive]Pitlock showed no signs of illness on this dreary day at the Wright National Soccer Campus, fighting through intermittent rain and a few close calls to earn her 11th shutout this season.

"I’m so excited," said Pitlock, staked a 1-0 lead when Maria Arnot scored with 5 minutes, 51 seconds left in the first half. "This is my first T-VC ever and this is amazing. It’s the best feeling in the world.

"This field’s so nice," she continued. "If we were playing on another field, it would be different. But the weather made me work harder."

Edmeston (12-4-2) closed each half with golden scoring opportunities but failed to convert both times. With 50 seconds left before halftime, senior forward Erin Olsen flicked a pass from eighth-grader Kori Hamm to Meghan Lottridge in close, but Pitlock came up with the save to preserve the Wildcats’ lead.

The Panthers had a similar sequence in the final minute, but Pitlock didn’t have to make a play this time. Lottridge centered a corner kick to Amanda Dockstader, who headed it just over Olsen at the far post. Milford cleared the ball and sent it past midfield to secure its second consecutive T-V final victory over the Panthers.

"It could have gone either way," said Edmeston coach Melanie Mumbulo, whose team fell, 3-1, in the 2004 final and lost, 4-0, to Milford during the 2005 regular season. "We had lots of opportunities — I think both teams did. It was probably the weather conditions a little bit. You mishit the ball a little and it flies a lot different in these kind of conditions."

Arnot’s goal late in the first half flew just fine, though. Arnot upped her team-best goal total to 35 this season with a difficult shot from the left side that gave Logan Campbell an assist. Charging hard to the 18-yard line and with defenders squeezing her sides, Arnot’s low liner to the left beat sliding freshman goalie Suellyn Tophoven.

"I didn’t get a lot of power behind it," Arnot said, "but it was in the right spot in the corner."

Tophoven, who took over full-time for injured senior goalie Rose Davis four games ago, kept Edmeston in it with a multitude of slap, kick and body saves.

"On a day like today, just getting something on it is the important thing," Mumbulo said. "It’s not necessarily pretty, but it’s getting the job done.

"She played fantastic for a freshman — for any year — it makes no difference if she’s a freshman or a senior," Mumbulo continued. "She played fantastic today, they all did."

Tophoven finished with 10 saves for an Edmeston team that was outshot, 20-11. The Panthers are one of five Class D teams that received a bye for the first round of the Section Four Tournament, which opens Tuesday. Fifth-seeded Edmeston will play at No. 4 Davenport at 3:30 p.m. Friday in a sectional quarterfinal.

"I think we’ve been playing this well for the last three or four weeks," Mumbulo said. "So this is just another stepping stone."

Should Edmeston win Friday, it likely will face top-seeded Downsville (18-0), the state’s No. 1 Class D team, in the semifinals.

"Downsville’s a long way away," Mumbulo said. "We can’t look past Davenport."

On the other side of the bracket is top-seeded Milford, which awaits the winner of Tuesday’s Jefferson at Schenevus opener.

"Our No. 1 objective is to win the Tri-Valley," Lorin Campbell said. "After that, we consider everything icing on the cake. I’m taking this next season coming up (sectionals) a little more seriously just because I feel our chances are good."

And Milford’s chances may have gotten that much better, now that Pitlock’s butterflies have been set free.

"I think it made me stronger just to play in this and to play against a team like (Edmeston)," Pitlock said. "This got me ready for (sectionals). ... I think we can go far. I think we can do it."

MILFORD 1, EDMESTON 0

Milford 1 0 — 1

Edmeston (12-4-2): None.

Milford (17-1): Maria Arnot 1-0, Logan Campbell 0-1.

Shots-corners: E 11-3; M 20-5.

Goalies: Suellyn Tophoven (E) 10; Chynna Pitlock (M) 8.