Strongsville Girls Semi-Final Victory Mired In Controversy

STRONGSVILLE, OH — Before the Lady Mustangs can take the pitch for the Division I State Championship game, their semi-final opponent is filing an official complaint against them. Twinsburg is accusing Strongsville of cheating in Tuesday's match-up.

Twinsburg claims Strongsville intentionally took the field with too many players, multiple times, giving the Lady Mustangs an unfair advantage in a game that was ultimately decided by one goal (1-0 Strongsville).

For its part, OHSAA has said it would investigate the claims, but that all official decisions are final. There would be no forfeiture of the game and Strongsville, still undefeated, will play Beavercreek on Friday night for the championship.

Twinsburg Schools' superintendent reportedly contacted Strongsville Superintendent Cameron Ryba to express her unhappiness with Tuesday's contest, Fox 8 reported.

The Strongsville Schools said the use of an extra player on the field was an "inadvertent error" and there was no "malicious intent."

Parents at Twinsburg Schools claim they've researched Strongsville Lady Mustangs games and that the extra player accident was a common tactic used by the girls soccer team, according to the Northeast Ohio Sports Insider blog.

Still, the matter will likely live and die with OHSAA. Twinsburg is unlikely to push the matter into the court system and proving that the extra player was anything other than unintentional seems a Herculean task.

The state championship game will be played Friday night at 7 p.m. at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus.

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