West Branch wins district in dominant fashion

Staff photo / Brian Yauger The West Branch girls soccer team celebrates after winning the district title on Saturday against Ravenna Southeast.

BURTON — For the second time in program history, West Branch’s girls soccer team lifted the district crown.

The 10th-seeded Warriors upended third-seed Southeast in a 6-0 victory to claim the Division IV, Burton District championship.

“It feels great,” first-year West Branch coach Zachary Dean said. “We have a great group of girls that have been working hard all year, and it’s paid off this year.”

The Warriors controlled pace from the opening kick, and once the goals started coming, they didn’t stop.

They kept it simple. Their game, their style and enjoying each step along the way.

“We just play our game and play our brand of soccer,” Dean said. “Just taking each moment and enjoying the process of this, just moving the ball and playing our game.”

Junior Allie Brammer kickstarted the Warriors on the scoresheet, connecting with the back of the net 13 minutes into the game. Brammer’s scoring became a trend on Saturday as she had a hat trick.

“She’s a great leader and works extremely hard,” Dean said. “I’m glad to see it pay off in the district final.”

The 10th-seeded Warriors continued filling the net as Presley Egli and Alinee Bacconi each scored in the first half as well.

Brammer opened the second half with her second goal, just five minutes into the frame.

Emma Klingensmith knocked one past before Brammer iced the game in the waning minutes.

Dean, who was a part of West Branch’s first district championship in 2022 as an assistant coach, mentioned there were some added nerves after taking over the program this year.

But he had faith in his team.

“It’s a great feeling, not gonna lie,” Dean said. “It’s a great feeling, pretty good. … There were some nerves coming in, but I believe in my girls, and I knew that they would be able to come up successfully.”

Having a solid team of leaders on the roster helped that transition.

“It was an easy transition coming from being the assistant, taking that step into the head coaching role,” Dean said. “I knew a lot of the girls, and it was easy to step in. The girls are great, and they do everything that I ask. They’re a great group of girls.”

Replacing nine seniors from last year isn’t easy, but the Warriors rose to the task.

“We’re a young team, and we lost a lot of seniors, and so a lot of players had to step up and take roles on the varsity team,” Dean said. “It’s just been about stepping up and playing (this season.)”

West Branch will face Chagrin Falls in the Region 13 semifinals on Tuesday in Twinsburg. Start time is set for 7 p.m.