ADA - The Ada boys soccer team took a big step forwward last year to register their best season in years.
This fall, the Bulldogs return 10 lettermen in an attempt to take the next step to championship contender status.
A total of 18 players comprise the solid roster, with five starters and seven seniors back from last fall's squad that finished 12-6 overall, 4-1 in the Northwest Conference and 3-4 in the tough North Central Ohio Soccer Association.
Fifth-year Ada head coach Jason Okuly feels the team "has good cohesion. They work well together, have fun and don't complain. There is a good team attitude.
ADA - Second-year Ada varsity girls soccer head coach Doug Poling is hoping his rising young team can set a program record for single-season wins this fall.
Toward that end, the Lady Bulldogs return eight letter winners from a squad that finished 5-11 overall and 4-3 in Northwest Conference play last fall.
The solid, experienced core will combine with some strong newcomers to comprise an improved, dangerous Ada club.
"We want to have at least a .500 record, set a program record for wins and finish second in the NWC," said Poling. "Everyone improved their skills and got better over the off-season."
LIMA - Spencerville edged Lincolnview and Paulding in a four-team Northwest Conference golf match including Ada at Tamarac Golf Course in Lima Wednesday.
The undefeated Bearcats won with 168 strokes, three shots ahead of the Lancers (171) and 10 up on Paulding (178). Ada shot 234.
Brevin Sizemore led the Bulldogs with a nine-hole score of 56. Rob Allison shot 57 and Alex Morgan carded a 59 while Austin Amburgey added a 62.
Ada's Jake Colwell shot 63 and Ethan Hull posted a 58.
After earning the program's third consecutive OAC Championship in 2017, the Ohio Northern men's cross country team has been chosen by the league's 10 head coaches to finish second this season.
After winning the OAC championship last year, Ohio Northern would continue their postseason success with a third-place finish at the NCAA Division III Regionals. From there, they received a team bid to the 2017 NCAA Championships where they wound up 19th.
After claiming back-to-back regular season conference titles in 2016 and 2017, the Ohio Northern women's soccer team has been selected by the 10 Ohio Athletic Conference head coaches to claim the regular season title again this year. The team is ranked 8th nationally.
Last season, Northern won both the 2017 OAC regular season and tournament titles and posted a 20-2-2 overall record with an undefeated 9-0-0 mark in the conference loop.
