ONEONTA _ The goal belonged to Lauren Hotaling, but this 1-0 Davenport victory should be remembered more for the efforts of defenders such as Samantha Meyerhoff and Katie Brown, and goalie Brittany Chase.
Playing the same opponent that ended their last two seasons at the same venue, the top-seeded Wildcats finally found a way to beat fourth-seeded Edmeston.
The Panthers' bid for a third straight Section Four Class D girls soccer title ended Tuesday on a blustery day at the National Soccer Hall of Fame fields.
And it was Davenport's flat refusal to allow a goal in the face of constant Edmeston pressure after halftime that allowed the Wildcats to advance to their fourth straight Class D final.
This time, they'll face second-seeded Schenevus (16-1) in the final at 10:45 a.m. Saturday, back at the Soccer Hall.
Edmeston ended Davenport's season with a 2-0 victory in the 2007 Class D final and advanced to states with a shootout victory over the Wildcats last season after the teams played to a 0-0 tie.
"There's a big rivalry with us in sectionals," said Meyerhoff, a fifth-year starter who turned aside numerous shots from her sweeper position in the second half. "We see them each year and to come out and play them the way we did, we kept the momentum up the entire game."
It also marked the final game for Edmeston standout Kori Hamm, the reigning Daily Star and co-Class D Player of the Year after leading Edmeston to a share of the Class D state title in 2008.
Hamm scored 97 goals over the past three seasons, but Davenport made it clear early on that if she was going to add to that total, it would take remarkable effort.
Brown rarely let Hamm out of her sight and Sabrina Lawrence also paid quite a bit attention to Hamm.
"She's the show," Davenport coach Ray Preston said of Hamm, who finished with an area-best 29 goals this season. "She's an excellent player. There were times she made runs, but the idea was for someone to get a foot in. We had to double-team her, which totally took away from our offense."
Still, the Wildcats converted on their lone quality scoring chance.
It started with a corner kick by Meyerhoff from the right side.
It appeared Meyerhoff's high service would be corralled by senior goalie Susanna Johnson, but as the ball descended about 8 yards in front to the goal, the wind seemed to get ahold of it. Johnson tried to make a late adjustment, but the ball bounced off her hands and toward the far post.
Hotaling ran onto it and shot to the near post, where it caromed off Edmeston's Samantha Martin before crossing the line.
"We have to clear the ball out on a corner and we didn't do that," said Panthers coach Melanie Mumbulo, whose team finished at 13-5-1 after going 22-0-2 in 2008, when they tied S.S. Seward, 2-2, in the final for the program's first state title.
For Hotaling, it marked the second straight game she's scored the winning goal. Her second-half goal lifted Davenport to a 1-0 win over Milford in a quarterfinal Friday.
"Mr. Preston said I should stay next to the goalie (on a corner kick)," Hotaling said of her goal with 17 minutes, 10 seconds left in the first half. "This was my first time playing (in that position)."
Actually, several Wildcats played new positions Tuesday.
Preston said starters Sarah Haight and Rebecca Hotaling _ Lauren's older sister _ couldn't play because they had the flu.
"I don't know how they did it," Preston said of a 17-0-1 team that hasn't left the field a loser since the 2007 sectional loss to Edmeston, an unbeaten streak of 39 games. "All season long, these girls have overachieved. It's just amazing. It's about the total character of this group of kids."
With about six minutes left in the first half, Edmeston started to dominate in terms of ball possession. Its first good chance came on a shot from the left side by Tonya Brownell that went just wide six minutes before halftime. Kendra Bresett then shot over the crossbar from 15 yards with 4:30 left in the first half.
In the second half, Edmeston held a 10-1 advantage in shots, which would have been higher if not for the ever-present Meyerhoff picking off shots before they reached the goal.
"I just try to put myself between the ball and the goal," Meyerhoff said.
Early in the second half, Ashley Harbison and Hamm each had hard shots saved by Chase, the latter a diving stop with 31 minutes left.
The best of Chase's 10 stops came with 17 1/2 minutes to go.
Harbison had a clear look from 15 yards on the right wing. It appeared her low shot to the far post would elude Chase, but the goalie dived and got just enough of it to push it past the left post.
"I just got the fingers part of my hand on it," said Chase, pressed into service this season when starting goalie Katie Goss tore an ACL during the summer.
Edmeston's last quality chance came with 8 1/2 minutes left, when Hamm freed up Taylor Ross for a shot that Chase saved.
"We've enjoyed this run," Mumbulo said. "We knew at some point it would probably come to an end. There was a lot of pressure on us to do some of the things we did last year even though we weren't the same team."
Davenport 1, Edmeston 0
SECTION FOUR CLASS D
Semifinal at National Soccer Hall of Fame fields
Edmeston0 0 _ 0
Davenport1 0 _ 1
4-Edmeston (13-5-1): None.
1-Davenport (17-0-1): Lauren Hotaling 1-0.
Shots-corner kicks: E 15-4; D 5-2.
Goalies: Susanna Johnson (E) 3; Brittany Chase (D) 10.
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Rob Centorani can be reached at rcentorani@thedailystar.com or 607-432-1000, ext. 209.
