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Sports

Angels Reach District Championship Game

St. Joseph's Academy defeated Kirkwood 4-0 in the Class 3 District 3 semifinals Tuesday at Webster Groves.

The Kirkwood girls soccer team had a memorable 2011 season.

The Pioneers were co-champions in the Suburban South Conference and set a school record with 16 victories. Kirkwood then won its first game in the Class 3 District 3 Tournament against rival Webster Groves.

But Kirkwood proved to be no match for top-seeded St. Joseph's Academy Tuesday in the Class 3 District 3 semifinals at Webster Groves.

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The Angels scored goals in both halves and cruised to a 4-0 victory. St. Joe's advances to the district championship game Thursday against the winner of the other Tuesday semifinal between Ursuline and Nerinx Hall. The Angels defeated Ursuline during the regular season and lost to Nerinx Hall in overtime.

"They are calling it the district of death," St. Joe's coach Maureen McVey said of the district which includes three teams from the powerhouse MWAA White Division. "There are three great teams and one of them is not even going to make it to the finals."

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Kirkwood would likely have been a very high seed in most districts but could only garner a fourth seed among the six teams.

"Kirkwood came at us and took us out of our game today," McVey said. "It was hard to get a rhythm out there. We were just lucky that we were able to finish today."

Abbey Stock got the Angels off to a fast start with a goal six minutes into the game and Kaley Nieters added a goal midway through the half.

Stock again scored early in a half, this time three minutes into the second half. Haley Kavanaugh closed out the scoring with a rocket shot from well out.

"We don't have Incarnate Word in our district this year but there are three or four really good teams," Angels junior Claire Champion said. "This is the time of the year which matters the most and it was intense out there today. Kirkwood was tough but we were able to finish."

St. Joe's takes a 15-5 record into Thursday's district title game. Kirkwood, which has just two seniors on the team, finished at 16-7. The previous school record for wins for the Pioneers was 14.

"We were very pleased with the season but not pleased with the result today," Kirkwood coach Phil Cotta said. "We did not play poorly. They just had the finishers today. This was a good experience for a young team. It showed us some things we need to shore up before next season."

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