Brotherly Bond Sparks John Glenn Goals

By Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com

September 15, 2020

It didn’t take even a half for the Beson-Montoya brothers to show off the potential of their connection this season.

Freshman forward Lawsen Beson-Montoya scored two goals during the first 40 minutes of his debut for the Bay City John Glenn boys soccer team on Sept. 8, and each of those goals was assisted by his brother Lance, a senior.

It was as though they had been playing together for years – except it was the first time they’d been on the field together for a game.

“Honestly, I feel like it wasn’t surprising to them,” John Glenn coach Justin Page said. “I think they almost expected to have some sort of chemistry. The more you play together, the more chemistry you’re going to have with each other. They haven’t been playing with each other, but both of them have watched the other play enough that they know what type of player they are.”

Lance and Lawsen have been playing soccer since they can remember, but with a three-year age gap, they had never suited up for the same team. They’ve even been part of different non-school programs for the past two years, with Lance playing in the Bay Area Soccer Association and Lawsen with the Midland Fusion.

Their mother, Lance said, was most excited about the chance to have both brothers on the same field. But it’s an opportunity that they also are relishing.

“Especially for high school sports, I think the best part about it is playing with your friends and the social aspect,” Lawsen said. “So, it’s great to get to play with him, my buddies and his buddies, too.”

Playing varsity as a freshman was a goal for Lawsen, and something Lance had expected his brother to achieve. While they weren’t playing together, they would often work on their games together, sometimes joined by their youngest brother Landen, who is in sixth grade. During these training sessions, big brother isn’t giving any freebies.

“He doesn’t really cut me any slack when we’re playing around,” Lawsen said. “He’s the older brother; he kind of roughs me up. He doesn’t really go easy on me, because he wants me to be at the level he’s at.”

For Page, though, the freshman being a viable varsity contributor was mostly just hearsay until he was able to see the speedster in action.

“Last year, I heard about him,” Page said. “’Oh, Lance’s brother is coming next year and he’s pretty good.’ You don’t know how good he’s going to be until the first kickoff of the first game. You could do all of these soccer drills extremely well, but when games start, it’s completely different.”

The early production only heightened the excitement and showed what the brothers are capable of in the John Glenn attack with Lance playing center midfield and Lawsen playing forward.

“It was awesome,” Lance said. “I kind of knew what my main goal was, and that was send the ball up to him because he’s got great speed. The first one, I just booted it up the field, and he was there. The second was a cross from a corner kick and he headed it in.”

While their natural chemistry is helping them connect on the field, their differing styles of play are too, as both brothers said they complement each other.

“Me and my brother are completely different players on the field – the physical aspect of it,” Lawsen said. “I was the one that was always the little dude on the field; he was more like a brick house. He might not have the speed I do, but he has foot skills like nobody compared to him. I was watching him thinking, ‘I have to get better on my foot skills.’ We’re like Batman and Robin, in a way.”

John Glenn is off to a 1-3 start, but the Bobcats are optimistic about the way they’ve played to this point against what Page said is tough competition. 

“I think we’re going to pick it up here coming up in this next stretch,” he said. “I think the starting point we’ve had this year is fairly good, even if the record doesn’t show it. We’re going to start putting together a win streak coming up here, hopefully, and ideally we can put ourselves in a position to win the first-ever boys soccer District championship at John Glenn.”

A strong core of players who return from last year’s Bay County Tournament champions – including Lance – lead the way, and the contributions of youngsters like Lawsen can help make it possible.

Either way, it’s going to be a memorable year for the Beson-Montoya family.

“I knew this year was going to be fun because I knew what my brother could do,” Lance said. “I knew I could trust him and what his strong suits were.”

Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.

PHOTOS: (Top) Lance, left, and Lawsen Beson-Montoya are providing an exciting connection for the Bay City John Glenn boys soccer team this fall. (Middle) Lawsen (22) and Lance (23) listen in during a break. (Photos courtesy of the Bay City John Glenn boys soccer program.)

Grosse Ile Finishes Finals Return on Top

November 2, 2019

By Jeffrey Norris
Special for Second Half

COMSTOCK PARK – By his own words, Adam Skehan is a pretty emotional person.

But when he gets on the soccer field – and more importantly, inside the goal box – Skehan has nerves of steel.

The Grosse Ile senior goalkeeper showed them Saturday at the MHSAA Division 3 Final at Comstock Park High School, coming up with several big saves including a huge point-blank stop late in regulation against Grand Rapids South Christian.

That save allowed Skehan's Red Devils to extend the game into overtime, and ultimately win it in a shootout, where once again Skehan came up big with two saves to propel Grosse Ile to a 2-1 win over the Sailors. 

"When I was going into the shootout, I was so scared," Skehan said. "But I put all the emotions behind me, and came out and played for my team. And now I am so happy. After that last save, I don't even know, I just started crying."

Skehan stopped two shootout attempts by South Christian players, including the last of the game by senior Rylee Visser. 

The Sailors also had one of their shots hit the sidebar of the goal in a game that was measured by inches throughout. 

The win Saturday came a year after an overtime Division 3 Final loss to Hudsonville Unity Christian, and gave the Red Devils their second title in program history to go with the first earned in 2002. 

"This is something we have been after for four years," said Grosse Ile coach Jon Evans, whose team has advanced to the Semifinals four of the past six seasons. "We always felt like we could get here, but it was always just getting over the hump. This year we were fortunate to win in a shootout."

And Evans is fortunate to have a keeper like Skehan leading the way.

Skehan finished with seven saves, and came up big especially during the second half and overtime when South Christian was pushing the tempo.

"I would say they definitely had more chances than we did, especially going into the second half when we had the lead," said Evans, whose team ended with a 24-2-1 record. "They really applied the pressure, but Adam came up big a couple of times and made some big saves for us to even get us to overtime. "

The Red Devils got on the scoreboard first when junior midfielder Bosh Tanyi scored on a hustle play at the 26:34 mark of the first half. 

Tanyi got loose on a through ball and beat South Christian keeper Nik Schepers when Schepers attempted to play the ball and Tanyi got by him. 

That score held up after 40 minutes of play, but that didn't bother South Christian coach Jason Boersma.

"We had seven games this year where we were down one and came back and won,” said Boersma, whose team ended with a 21-5-2 mark. "That shows a ton about the determination that these guys have. I told the guys before the game that I don't know what is going to happen, but I said it is going to be a great game. And I said if we get down one, I need someone to grab that ball out of the back of the net and run it back and play tough."

That player was senior midfielder Reese Bos, who played inspired soccer during the second half and overtime. 

He tied the game at the 20:59 mark of the second half when he beat Skehan to the ball and headed it into the back of the net. 

The Bos goal was the first given up by Skehan and the Grosse Ile defense all tournament. Bos had a couple of other chances, but Skehan stopped them.

"Everything was happening very fast. We just let off for the worst seconds that we could have," Skehan said of Bos' goal. "We gave up a goal, and that happens, but we came back and finished strong."  

Click for the full scoring summary.

PHOTOS: (Top) Grosse Ile celebrates its Division 3 Final shootout win over the Sailors. (Middle) South Christian’s Thom DeVries (8) and Grosse Ile’s Max Aston work to gain possession.