The Big Walnut High School boys soccer team overcame a slow start to win its Division II district tournament opener.

The seventh-seeded Golden Eagles were tied at 1 at halftime with Whitehall in their first-round game but scored four goals in a six-minute span in the second half en route to a 5-1 win Oct. 17.

"In the first half, we were terrible," coach Brett Weiss said. "They made us pay for it."

Senior forward Austin Foor led the way for the Golden Eagles with four goals. Senior midfielder Shance Facemyer had one goal, senior defender Bradyn Dronsfield had two assists and sophomore midfielder Adam Carifa and junior defender Dominic Zumpone each had one assist.

"The tournament is all about 'Can you survive your bad game?' " Weiss said. "You're going to have a bad game somewhere. If that's our 'bad game,' I'll take it."

Big Walnut played sixth-seeded Hamilton Township in the second round Oct. 18, defeating the Rangers 6-1.

Foor scored five goals and Carifa added one in the second half.

The Golden Eagles advanced to a district semifinal, playing host to ninth-seeded Granville Tuesday, Oct. 23.

The winner plays second-seeded Watterson or 10th-seeded Licking Heights in a district final Saturday, Oct. 27, at Westerville Central.

Big Walnut last won a district championship in 2008. That season, the Golden Eagles reached a regional final before losing to Dayton Carroll 3-1.

Girls soccer team wins tourney opener

The girls soccer team defeated London 6-0 in the first round of the Division II district tournament Oct. 17 to improve to 10-7.

Scoring were junior defender Hayley Apple, sophomore defenders Makenna Hammond and Jennie Wenger, senior midfielders Andrea Lowe and Jessie Wenger and junior midfielder Maria Sturtevant.

Seeded sixth, Big Walnut played fourth-seeded Hartley in the second round Oct. 20, with the winner playing second-seeded DeSales or seventh-seeded Jonathan Alder in a district semifinal on Wednesday, Oct. 24, at the higher seed. The semifinal winner will play top-seeded Granville, fifth-seeded Bexley, eighth-seeded Buckeye Valley or 12th-seeded Amanda-Clearcreek in the district final Saturday, Oct. 27, at Gahanna.

Cross country teams compete at district

The cross country teams competed in the OCC-Capital meet Oct. 13 at Lancaster.

The girls team scored 127 points to finish in fifth, behind New Albany (33), Olentangy Orange (65), Olentangy (82) and Watkins Memorial (84) and ahead of Delaware Hayes (140) and Mount Vernon (155).

Franklin Heights did not have a team score.

Senior Bethany Bogantz paced the Golden Eagles, finishing seventh in 20 minutes, 45.2 seconds. Also scoring were senior Stephanie Keller (12th, 21:12.5) and sophomores Makenna Hemming (36th, 22:45.6), Hannah Seabrook (39th, 22:54.3) and Addison Shawver (43rd, 23:06.7).

The boys team finished seventh (151) in the league meet, behind New Albany (32), Olentangy (56), Orange (91), Watkins Memorial (115), Delaware (144) and Mount Vernon (145).

Franklin Heights did not have a team score.

Sophomore Jonathan Kahrmann led the Golden Eagles, finishing 26th (17:56.6). Also scoring were senior A.J. Barber (28th, 18:00.4), junior Jacob Oppenheimer (30th, 18:12.3), senior Colton Shidaker (45th, 19:00.3) and sophomore Jared Boseker (53rd, 19:26.9).

Big Walnut competed in the Division I district meet held Oct. 20 at Watkins Memorial.

The boys team was in the 15-team district 2 meet and the girls team competed in the 14-team district 1 meet. The top five teams and top 20 individuals in each race advanced to the regional meet on Saturday, Oct. 27, at Pickerington North.

The top four teams and top 16 individuals at regional advance to the state meet Nov. 3 at National Trail Raceway.

Football team getting ready for Falcons

The football team will conclude the regular season Friday, Oct. 26, at Franklin Heights.

The Golden Eagles were 5-3 overall and 3-2 in the OCC-Capital before playing Orange on Oct. 19 and were 16th in the Division II, Region 7 computer ratings. The top eight teams in each region qualify for the playoffs.

Franklin Heights was 2-6 and 0-5 before playing Delaware on Oct. 19.

Big Walnut has won its last 11 games against the Falcons, including a 41-10 victory last season. Franklin Heights' last victory against the Golden Eagles came in 1999, when it won 13-7.

Big Walnut lost to host New Albany 17-6 on Oct. 12, marking its fourth consecutive loss in the series and fifth loss in the last six meetings with New Albany. The Golden Eagles' last win in the series came in 2008, 17-14.

Big Walnut trailed New Albany 10-0 at halftime. Senior running back Alex Clark scored the Golden Eagles' only touchdown in the third quarter on a 1-yard run and finished with 11 yards on three carries.

Senior quarterback Carson Chatterton had 69 yards rushing on 12 carries and was 5-for-12 passing for 39 yards, as Big Walnut was held to 127 total yards. From his linebacker position, he had a sack and an interception.

New Albany, which was 6-2 and 5-0 before playing Watkins Memorial on Oct. 19, had 404 total yards, including 346 rushing.