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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

MONTEVALLO – Throughout the season, the Montevallo Bulldogs have racked up wins over quality opponents as they continue to rise the ranks of Class 4A ahead of the postseason.

Now, they have not only booked their spot in the playoffs, but they’ll enter as area champions.

The Bulldogs clinched the area championship thanks to a 5-1 win over the Northside Rams on Tuesday, April 9 at Montevallo High School.

In the teams’ first meeting of the season, Montevallo needed a penalty shootout to claim the victory after a 2-2 draw following overtime. The win gave Northside its first loss of the season and put the Bulldogs in the driver’s seat in the area.

Montevallo also entered the match with a strong recent form after going on a five-match win streak and hadn’t lost since a March 11 matchup with 6A Calera.

That gave the Bulldogs plenty of momentum heading into a match with the area title up for grabs.

Montevallo jumped ahead in the first half, scoring more goals in the first half than the two they scored in 90 minutes in the two teams’ first meeting.

The Bulldogs put three goals on the board and used their defensive effort to keep Northside out of the back of the net. That gave them a 3-0 lead at halftime to take control of the matchup.

While the Rams found the back of the net in the second half, Montevallo limited them to just the one goal and put more distance between it and its area foe on the offensive end.

After a three-goal first half, the Bulldogs added two more goals to their total to keep Northside at bay.

In the end, Montevallo walked away with the 5-1 win to wrap up its second straight area championship.

The Bulldogs have one more area game remaining against Holt on Tuesday, April 16 at 7:30 at Holt High School, but before then, they will face county foe Shelby County at home on Thursday, April 11 at 7:15 p.m.