RAVENNA — Earlier this month, Canfield junior Maci Toporcer was battling through a sickness. She was still on the field, but obviously not at full strength.

The opponent? The Kenston Bombers.

The result? A 1-1 draw.

On Thursday, Canfield got another crack at Kenston, but this time a lot more was on the line. For the chance to win a district crown, the Cardinals weren’t going to waste the opportunity.

Toporcer connected with the back of the net twice, helping lead Canfield to a 2-1 victory and win the Division II, Akron 1 District title.

“When we tied them 1-1, she was sicker than a dog,” Cardinals coach Phil Simone said. “She almost passed out on the sidelines after the game. We knew she was healthy tonight and she’d bring energy.

“We just moved her around and she was able to find those two shots and bury them. These are the moments she’s been waiting for.”

Despite her two goals, Toporcer was quick to shift the credit to her team.

“I definitely think feeling better played a big part, but I think tonight I’m really proud of the girls in the performance we gave,” she said. “Everyone played their hearts out.”

With 18 days between meetings, the lessons learned from the first matchup were still fresh in their minds. To put it in a single word, aggression. Playing up and playing confident were the keys.

That paid off at the tail end of the first half as Canfield was able to pepper the net. None went in, but it did just enough to keep the ball in the attacking third and the Bombers’ goalkeeper on her toes.

“When we tied them at their place, we scored with less than a minute left, but we felt we controlled a lot of the second half of it,” Simone said. “So we felt that if we came out aggressively, put some pressure on them, we would get our opportunities and just not play scared.

“The girl’s got a feeling and a rhythm (at the end of the first). Everything is clicking. When that’s happening, then we’ve got a great group to be able to keep possession and keep firing.”

Kenston is a team that has evaded Canfield in the past. Between a tie earlier this season and besting the Cardinals in the 2020 district finals matchup, taking down the Bombers has been something deep in the minds of Canfield’s players.

“We just wanted it more, like you could tell,” senior defender Addy Masters said. “We were talking about it all day at school. … We lost to them in my sophomore year, and it just feels good to finally get a win against them.”

Despite this not being Simone’s first district title with the Cardinals, or second, the feeling never gets old.

“It’s not the first, it’s not the second, but they never get old. It’s always a great feeling,” Simone said. “I told our girls at the beginning of the season, that I’ve experienced this, one of our seniors experienced this, and I wanted them to feel this experience. It’s great. I love seeing them this excited.”

That one player was Masters, who was a freshman on Canfield’s 2019 district championship team.

The opportunities for revenge don’t end here however. Back in August, Canfield fell 4-1 to West Branch. The Warriors won the Akron 2 District championship in a 2-0 victory over the West Geauga Wolverines, setting up a rematch with Canfield.

Start time is set for 6 p.m. on Tuesday at Boardman High School.

“We knocked them out last year in a PK shootout,” Simone said. “It’s going to be a big, big game.”

byauger@tribtoday.com