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District showdowns
By STEVE LEE, Times Staff Writer LAND O'LAKES -- The last time Land O'Lakes and River Ridge met for a district title, River Ridge's Melissa Simmons scored the game-winner during penalty kicks. River Ridge was the home team for that 1997 contest and Land O'Lakes hosts today's Class 2A, District 8 final at 7. But when it comes to the two teams, sites and records can be thrown out. "It doesn't matter," Land O'Lakes coach Vicky King said. "Most of the fields are the same and both teams advance. "Winning the district matters. This is a new season." Added River Ridge coach Keith Hooper, "It's a friendly rivalry, but still I think it will be a fiercely competitive game. The other team is not going to give up." The Gators (20-1-1) beat the Royal Knights (11-2-5) 5-0 and 6-0 this season, but King does not expect a shutout this time. "The third time is always the hardest," said King, whose team cruised to a 10-0 win over Gulf in Wednesday's semifinal. River Ridge edged Zephyrhills in the other semifinal, narrowly beating the Bulldogs on Sarah Slusak's last-minute goal. Last season, Land O'Lakes reached the regional semifinals. River Ridge is making its first regional appearance since advancing to the regional semifinals in 1999. River Ridge goalkeeper Kat Mazella is the lone Knight with regional playoff experience and offered a bit of advice to her teammates for tonight's game. "Just play to the end," Mazella said. "We need to play really strong and try not to make mistakes, and hope we can score a goal or two." Slusak is the Knights' leader in that department with 17 goals, including two in the semifinal. But that number pales in comparison to Land O'Lakes and county leader Stacy Bishop, who scored twice against Gulf to break her own school record. Bishop has 47 goals and teammate Casie Poyssick has 37 goals. NO RAMS: Tonight's 3A-7 final will be without top seed Ridgewood, which won a school-record 15 games and posted a 7-0-1 district mark. The Rams lost to Springstead on Wednesday. "To take our first district loss in the tournament is disappointing," Ridgewood coach John Herig said. "We were, I guess, looking beyond this team and got into a kickball match, then lost it on PKs." ON THE MEND: Mitchell's Brittney Nipper injured her right hip when she was undercut by a Leesburg player in the first half of Wednesday's game. She lay on the field for 30 minutes before an ambulance took her to the hospital. Nipper, a defensive midfielder who marks opponents in the middle of the field and plays a key role in starting the Mustangs' attack, was diagnosed with a deep contusion to the hip. -- Staff writer Frank Pastor contributed to this report.
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