Alcona Savors McCoy's National Saves Record
September 28, 2017
By Dennis Chase
Special for Second Half
LINCOLN – When it comes to the MHSAA record books, Conner McCoy is the real McCoy.
The Lincoln Alcona senior keeper, who previously set the state soccer record for saves in a season, added to his laurels Wednesday night, becoming the state and national leader in career saves.
McCoy stopped eight shots in a 2-0 win over Oscoda to increase his career saves total to 1,191 – six more than Corky Hickmott, who played at Montrose from 2004-07. Hickmott was in attendance to see McCoy eclipse his mark Wednesday night.
“I was super psyched about getting it,” McCoy said afterwards. “I thanked my team so much. Plus, I knew my mom was watching down on me. It was exciting.”
Wednesday’s game was stopped in the second half when McCoy broke the record. The game ball was saved and will later be inscribed with the date he set the record along with his final number of career saves.
“We’re a small Division 4 school,” Tigers coach Tim Munro said. “Something like this may never happen here again. He’s setting a record that’s going to be tough to beat because we’ve got several more games to play. He’s going to annihilate it.”
It was a big night in this small town. Playing before the largest soccer crowd in school history – Munro estimated it at about 1,000 – Lincoln Alcona clinched at least a share of the North Star championship with its shutout victory. That feat, however, was overshadowed by the historical significance of the moment.
And McCoy and his teammates did not disappoint.
“He was really nervous,” Munro said of McCoy. “I’m glad it’s over for him. He played well, getting the shutout, but there wasn’t a whole lot of pressure (shots) on him. Our defense was really good.”
McCoy was quick to praise his teammates afterwards.
“The first thing I did was to thank my team,” the 17-year-old captain said. “I couldn’t do anything without them. They’ve given me so much support throughout this. They were so excited I got it. I think there were a few tears (shed). We’re like family. When we got together that first day (of practice), we knew there was a real connection between all of us.”
One of his closest friends is senior forward Jordan Steiner, who netted both goals Wednesday to bring his season total to 40. He had 47 a year ago.
“I’ve been playing (soccer) with Conner since I was 5,” Steiner said. “To see him go through this, and achieve this, is crazy. Kudos to him. He earned it. He worked hard for it. He’s like a stone wall at the net.”
Steiner said the Tigers were “careful” not to talk too much about McCoy’s chase for the record because they didn’t want to add more pressure on their goalie. Instead, as the record neared, they focused more on the team angle.
“We approached it like, ‘Hey, this is just another game. Let’s do our best and try to get a win,’” Steiner said.
McCoy was unaware Hickmott was among those watching. Had he known, McCoy said he probably would have been even more nervous.
McCoy reached out to Hickmott recently. Hickmott made the trip to West Branch Ogemaw Heights on Monday when it appeared the record could fall that night. McCoy made 18 saves in a 3-2 setback, leaving him three short of the record.
“It was amazing (Hickmott) drove all the way here after going to Ogemaw Heights,” Munro said. “He’s a nice guy. He didn’t want to, but I said, ‘C’mon you’ve got to be on television.’ He was interviewed after the game, too. It was really neat.”
McCoy set the MHSAA single-season save record with 391 as a sophomore. That lasted one year as the athletic 6-foot-2 goalie turned away 401 shots in his junior campaign.
Then, right as he was finishing his basketball season in March, his mother, Sheryl, passed away from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) at the age of 50. Sheryl coached youth soccer for 14 years.
“She always loved soccer, and she loved to coach,” McCoy said. “She pushed everyone to be the best they could be. She could see the potential in everyone.”
McCoy said he can still feel her presence.
“Before every game I say a prayer and look up to God,” he said. “I know she’s watching.”
McCoy’s father, Tim, and older brothers, Jordan and Chris, carry the torch now as Conner’s most ardent supporters.
“I’m nervous for him and excited at the same time,” Tim said Monday on the drive home from West Branch. “If that was me out there I’d be a nervous wreck. I don’t think I’d be able to do it.”
That’s not to say Conner didn’t experience a few butterflies this week.
“I think (Monday) was the first time I’ve ever seen him nervous, all because he was getting close to the record,” Tim McCoy said. “Normally when he’s out there, no matter what team they’re facing, he plays like he’s in a comfort zone. He’s solid.”
So what fatherly advice did he offer?
“I told him to play his game, not worry about the count, and focus on every shot,” Tim said. “He wants his team to win more than he wants the record.”
“He likes to win. That’s the driving force,” Munro added.
It was a coincidence the record fell in a league showdown with Oscoda. Tim works at a call center there that deals with government contracts. He said his co-workers are well versed on Lincoln Alcona soccer and his son’s accomplishments.
“I don’t think there’s a single person at work who doesn’t know about (the record),” he said proudly. “I tell everybody.”
Wednesday’s win improved Lincoln Alcona’s record to 9-6-2. But that mark is deceiving, Munro said.
“We’re a small school,” he said. “We only have 200 kids to pick from and we play a lot of bigger schools in Divisions 1, 2 and 3. That makes a big difference. That’s one of the reasons why there are so many shots at (McCoy).”
Also, the Tigers, who face Gaylord on Saturday, play the maximum number of games in the regular season and are two-time District champions.
“We lost to Genesee Christian the last two years in Regionals and they went on to win the state championship,” Munro said.
So now that the record is behind him, what’s next for McCoy and his teammates?
Here’s a clue: It’s not about saves, it’s about wins.
“We’re hoping for a (District) three-peat,” he said.
Dennis Chase worked 32 years as a sportswriter at the Traverse City Record-Eagle, including as sports editor from 2000-14. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Lincoln Alcona's Conner McCoy goes high to stop a header for one of his saves. (Middle) McCoy stretches out to deflect the ball away from his goal. (Below) McCoy slides to the ground to gather up another save toward his national record. (Photos courtesy of the McCoy family.)
VIDEO: WBKB shows McCoy's three saves to break the national record and interviews him after.
Flights, Flexibility, Fun & New Friends All Parts of Beaver Island's Sports Story
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
August 27, 2021
Chartered flights and overnight stays for all away games are part of the normal routine for one northern Michigan high school’s student-athletes.
Opportunities to make lots of new friends always come with the games too.
That’s the norm for Beaver Island athletes representing the Lakers in soccer, volleyball and basketball while competing in the Northern Lights League.
“We fly everywhere, and it is awesome,” says second-year soccer coach Bryan Doughman. “I thoroughly enjoy the travel.
“The biggest challenge is the kids forgetting something, and I am ultimately responsible for ‘How am I going to fix this?’”
Beaver Island is the largest island in Lake Michigan, northwest of Charlevoix in the Lower Peninsula and southeast of Manistique in the U.P. The island is home to 600 year-round residents, with 60 students kindergarten through 12th grade, including 17 in grades 9-12 this school year.
Doughman manages a restaurant on the Island. He is a native of Cincinnati. Coaching the co-ed soccer team has permitted him to make his first trips to the Upper Peninsula and Mackinac Island.
But social aspects provide the most benefit for the student-athletes. The Islanders will make their first trip of the season Sept. 15 to Concord Academy Boyne. As they do at home, the Islanders will play a game Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. The overnight experience is provided by the home school.
“The kids will be seeing and meeting new friends,” Doughman noted. That’s what they ultimately look forward to … socially with different people.
“We all know the situation of going to work where you interact with the same people over and over again and can’t wait to meet new people,” he continued. “That’s what they kinda go through their whole lives.”
Beaver Island’s girls volleyball team opened its season Aug. 27 with a pair of losses at Maplewood Baptist in Kinross, located in the eastern Upper Peninsula.
The soccer and volleyball teams will open their home seasons Sept. 10 and 11, hosting Hannahville Nah Tah Wahsh, another U.P. opponent.
“The island community enjoys being able to come and cheer on the island teams,” noted second-year volleyball coach Bridget Martin.
The boys and girls basketball teams will go through their seasons this winter similarly. Athletics and social opportunities are a source of satisfaction for Kerry Smith, Beaver Island’s athletic director. She grew up on the Island and competed for the Islanders.
“The best part of being an AD on an island is the great deal of satisfaction I get from watching our kids be able to connect with other kids their age and play a sport and have a great time doing it,” Smith said. “The kids here know what a privilege it is to be able to have a sports program, and they show their appreciation through their outstanding sportsmanship – and that makes me beam with pride!”
Dianna Behl, Beaver Island’s language arts teacher, will take over the girls basketball team this winter. She has served as the school’s Nordic ski club advisor the past four years and has practiced with the basketball team frequently. She was a three-year letter winner at Charlevoix High School.
She’s expects her team to benefit from players taking part in fall sports.
“I am very excited for our season because many of the players are participating in soccer and volleyball, so they should be in great shape for basketball season,” she said. “I hope to build on their solid base.”
Dan Burton will be entering his seventh season as the varsity boys basketball coach. He’s also developing an elementary basketball program and guiding the middle schoolers. He expects to have a middle schooler or two join the high school team to fill out the roster this winter.
“The best part of coaching is getting these the students an outlet for sports,” said Burton, a business owner on the island. “Otherwise, there’s nothing much else to do in a small town like this.
“Keeping a sports program is the most important thing.”
The soccer team also is relying on middle schoolers as it attempts to find enough players to compete. The co-ed roster is dominated by girls, and the Islanders have only two seniors and one junior on the squad.
“I just hope we can improve a lot on our basics this year,” Doughman said. “I hope to just have fun. The biggest challenge is they’re all first and second-year players, except for a handful.”
Weather is the most difficult challenge of being an island-based sports team, the coaches acknowledged.
“The greatest challenge of coaching an island team is Mother Nature,” Behl said. “The girls practice hard for days and then at the last minute bad weather comes in and the planes aren't flying us out, or our competition in, for the games.
“It is heartbreaking and happens every season,” she continued. “Nonetheless, I am so impressed with how well the girls handle it. It is a life lesson in flexibility, and they are pros.”
Because of those frequent weather changes, spotting the athletic director in the school hallways often is a bad sign.
“The weather is a major frustration and always a factor for us,” Smith said. “On game day, I try not to show my face down in the high school wing because the kids always think I am coming to deliver bad news.”
The school often chooses which teams will go on to MHSAA postseason play based on their success in the league. Beaver Island sent its boys basketball team to Districts last season.
The last Beaver Island team to move past the first round of Districts was the volleyball team in 2013. The Islanders beat Mackinaw City and went on to play Engadine before seeing their season come to an end. The school’s best-ever tournament run was by the soccer team in 2005.
“They were District winners; this was the farthest any team has ever gone,” Smith recalled. “It was a huge celebration. The team was greeted by the fire trucks, parents and pretty much the whole community when they flew home that day.”
Beaver Island anticipates sending the boys basketball team to Districts again this year, and possibly the girls basketball team as well.
Mackinac Island is the Islanders’ favorite place to travel, according to coaches’ consensus. That’s the host for the volleyball and soccer Northern Lights Conference tournaments.
“One of our favorites would have to be Mackinac Island because the girls enjoy flying to another island, riding in the horse drawn carriage and the rare treat of getting to go to a Starbucks,” she said.
Mackinac Island will host conference tournaments for soccer Oct. 16 and volleyball Oct. 23.
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Beaver Island's Ella Moon passes during a volleyball match this fall. (2) Olga Burton winds up to serve. (3) Beaver Island plays its lone home soccer game during the 2020 season. (4) The Beaver Island boys basketball team participated in District play this past winter. (Photos courtesy of the Beaver Island athletic department.)