Edison falls to Liberty-Benton after scoreless first half

TIFFIN — Edison was right there. The fifth-seeded Chargers were going toe-to-toe with top-seeded Liberty-Benton. But a 10-minute stretch in the second half doomed Edison. Scoreless more than eight minutes into the second half, L-B scored twice in a 2-minute stretch and added two more goals just a few minutes later to top Edison 4-0 in a Division III boys soccer district semifinal at Frost-Kalnow Stadium in Tiffin on Wednesday. The Chargers finish the season 11-8. Edison needed wins over Huron and Cory-Rawson just to get to the district round. "I'm real pleased with the kids' overall effort," Chargers coach James Duffy said. "We ran into a good team and everybody gets better as you go on. It's been a successful season." The Chargers had chances in the first half, but couldn't scoot a shot past Liberty-Benton (12-4-3) goalie Ben Jenkins. Edison played well in the first half, but was still tied. The Eagles finally broke through in the second half. After a tremendous first half by Samuel McClester in goal for the Chargers, he was hit by an onslaught from L-B. First, Bryce Fox scored on a rocket that just snuck in the top left corner from about 30 yards out with 31:51 to play. A few minutes later, Aiden Hatch corralled a rebound and got it past McClester. Freshman Jairo Colina struck twice later. He lasered in a shot from 30 yards out to make it 3-0 with 24:19 to play and added a second goal with 21:32 remaining. All told, it was four Liberty-Benton goals in 10:19. "Liberty-Benton is a good team," Duffy said. "They came out in the second half and their tactics were obviously very much going to the goal. They can thump a ball. They caught us a little bit. We had some difficulty covering some high parts in the corners. They beat us in a good way." The Chargers have seven seniors -- Jace Jeremay, Langedan Leimeister-Day, Jonah Main, McClester, Noah Proctor, Isaac Sloan and Nick Strecker. "This senior group, even in terms of a legacy, they've won two championships in two seasons," Duffy said. "This is better than other teams have done in the past. Collectively, we're a strong program. This group is a special group the past few years. It's been a privilege my two years I've been with them."