Preview: Seeking Storybook Endings
November 2, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
We’ll have a first-time Division 1 champion this fall. It’s guaranteed. We could have first-time winners in Divisions 2 and 4 as well.
And if one of the four past champions playing in Saturday’s MHSAA Boys Soccer Finals wins again, they all have great stories too – be it the contenders looking for first titles since 1995 and 2001, an unranked power that made its way to the final day after a slow start, or the lone returnee from last year’s last day that missed out on another title falling by one goal.
Saturday's Finals kick off at noon and 3 p.m., with Division 1 followed by Division 4 at Rochester Hills Stoney Creek and Division 2 followed by Division 3 at Comstock Park. All will be broadcast live and viewable with subscription on MHSAA.tv, with audio available on MHSAANetwork.com. See below for glances at all eight finalists, and come back to Second Half later Saturday for coverage of all four championship games.
Division 1
DETROIT CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/rank: 20-2-4, No. 5
Coach: Gene Pulice, sixth season (80-24-19)
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Central.
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Drake Midgley, jr. M (11 goals, 10 assists); Ryan Pierson, sr. F (30 goals, 13 assists); Kevin Blossfield, sr. GK (0.12 goals-against average), Andrew Nicholsen, jr. GK (0.37 goals-against average).
Outlook: Detroit Catholic Central will make its first appearance in an MHSAA championship game in this sport, with Wednesday’s Semifinal the second time it had reached that level of the tournament (and second time in three seasons). This run has included wins over No. 18 Novi in the District Final and No. 12 Plymouth in the Regional championship game before the Shamrocks eliminated No. 4 and reigning champion East Kentwood to earn the Finals berth. Blossfield and Nicholsen have split time in goal and combined for 16 shutouts this fall.
WALLED LAKE CENTRAL
Record/rank: 22-1-2, No. 15
Coach: Joel Sharpe, 21st season (221-170-41)
League finish: First in Lakes Valley Conference.
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Ray Daniels, sr. F (17 goals, 8 assists); Alex Dalou, sr. M (10 goals, 14 assists); Nik Palafox, sr. M (16 goals, 15 assists), Ellton Pllumbaj, jr. F (14 goals, 10 assists).
Outlook: Walled Lake Central’s first run to a Final also has included its first Regional title in this sport, with a win over No. 10 Rochester in the Regional Semifinal and four shutouts over six total tournament games. In fact, the combination of junior keepers Brian Ostepanko, Jackson Bowers and Zaid Alsorachi has totaled 20 shutouts in 25 games this fall as they’ve saved nearly 93 percent of shots they’ve faced. A streak of 16 straight shutouts through the District Final tied the MHSAA record set in 2008, and the 20 total are tied for fourth most in one season. Dalou earned an all-state honorable mention last season.
Division 2
EAST LANSING
Record/rank: 17-9-1, unranked
Coach: Nick Archer, 41st season (660-176-75)
League finish: Fourth in Capital Area Activities Conference Blue.
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recent 2014), two runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Ansu Lebbie, sr. F (9 goals, 5 assists); Alden Metzmaker, sr. F (12 goals, 3 assists); Almir Celovic, sr. M (3 goals, 5 assists); Petrus Martens, sr. M (8 goals, 3 assists).
Outlook: East Lansing likely is the surprise of the tournament after starting this season 2-4-1. But another championship this weekend would be the program’s third in five years. The Trojans beat No. 14 Haslett and No. 15 Goodrich on the way to this week after avenging near the end of the regular season an early loss to Division 3 No. 7 Williamston. East Lansing has won nine of its last 10 including two games by shootout and a third in overtime.
HOLLAND
Record/rank: 18-5-2, No. 8
Coach: Greg Ceithaml, 21st season (270-152-38)
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Green.
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Sam Accardo, sr. M; Jose Penaloza, sr. F; Owen Beird, sr. M; Daniel Arellano, sr. F. (Statistics not submitted.)
Outlook: Wednesday’s Semifinal win over No. 7 Coldwater was a first for the Dutch, coming off the second Regional title in program history. Holland heads into this historic final step riding a string of four straight shutouts and with a 26-2 scoring margin over six tournament games. The Dutch also eliminated No. 19 Holland Christian, in the District Final, and No. 4 Grand Rapids Christian in the Regional championship game. Arellano and Penaloza made the all-state first team last season, and Accardo earned honorable mention.
Division 3
FLINT POWERS CATHOLIC
Record/rank: 20-2-1, No. 3
Coach: Tony Rowe, sixth season (100-26-11)
League finish: Third in Saginaw Valley League.
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recent 2013), one runner-up finish.
Players to watch: Mason Smith, sr. M (17 goals, 26 assists); Bryan Lendzion, sr. F (26 goals, 12 assists); Brendan Tilden, sr. GK (0.45 goals-against average, 13 shutouts); Kyle Genord, sr. M (3 goals, 16 assists).
Outlook: Last season’s Division 3 runner-up just missed its third championship, falling 1-0 to Grand Rapids Catholic Central in the 2016 Final. A number of last year’s contributors are back for another shot – Smith made the all-state first team last fall, while Tilden made the third team and Lendzion earned an honorable mention. Junior midfielder Blase Haynes also had 14 goals heading into this week, and junior midfielder Garret Delamielleure added seven goals and 12 assists. The Chargers downed No. 5 Detroit Country Day in the Semifinal after beating No. 9 Lansing Catholic in the Regional Final.
LUDINGTON
Record/rank: 18-4-2, No. 16
Coach: Kris Anderson, seventh season (79-63-8)
League finish: Second in Lakes 8 Conference.
Championship history: Division 3 champion 2001, two runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Ben Knoer, sr. M (24 goals, 4 assists); Caleb Schoon, sr. F (17 goals, 12 assists); Lucien Chasse, sr. M (9 goals, 9 assists); Kyle Wendt, fr. GK (1.30 goals-against average, 9 shutouts).
Outlook: Ludington shook things up with its Semifinal win over No. 4 Grand Rapids South Christian, which continued the Orioles’ longest run since that championship season of 2001. They have won 12 of their last 13 games, with only a loss to Division 4 No. 3 Muskegon Western Michigan Christian breaking up the streak. Knoer and Schoon have combined to score more than half the team’s goals, but they’ve had plenty of helpers feeding them opportunities; junior midfielder Will Flewelling also had nine assists heading into this week, and senior midfielder Lynn Richard had seven assists and eight goals.
Division 4
ANN ARBOR GREENHILLS
Record/rank: 19-6-1, No. 5
Coach: Lucian Popescu, eighth season (139-60-14)
League finish: Third in Detroit Catholic League AA.
Championship history: Three MHSAA runner-up finishes (most recent 2010).
Players to watch: Zachary Zimmerman, jr. M (31 goals, 24 assists); Evan Marx, sr. M (17 goals, 13 assists); Matthew Pumphrey, sr. M (13 goals, 12 assists); Leo Fried, jr. GK (1.18 goals-against average, 13 shutouts).
Outlook: Greenhills also made the Semifinals last season before breaking out this week to reach its first Final since back-to-back runner-up finishes in 2009 and 2010. The Wednesday win over reigning champion and No. 14-ranked Burton Genesee Christian was just the latest of an impressive string that included defeats of No. 6 Hillsdale Academy and No. 13 Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central in the Regional and No. 12 Manchester to open the District. Zimmerman earned all-state honorable mention last season. Junior midfielder Neil Bazaj added 20 assists heading into the week.
KALAMAZOO HACKETT
Record/rank: 19-1-2, No. 4
Coach: Ian Troutman, third season (record N/A)
League finish: First in Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 1995), one runner-up finish.
Players to watch: Brennan Creek, jr. M (40 goals, 37 assists), Aidan Gillig, jr. M (17 goals, 11 assists); Jacob Wurtz, sr. M (2 goals, 6 assists); Max Keenan, jr. F (41 goals, 14 assists).
Outlook: Hackett is back in the Final for the second time in three seasons; the Irish fell to Genesee Christian in a shootout in the 2015 championship game and then lost in overtime in the Semifinals a year ago. This time, Hackett downed No. 8 Buckley in the Semifinal, No. 11 Hartford in the Regional Final and No. 17 Kalamazoo Christian in the District Final. There’s plenty of firepower – the Irish have outscored six postseason opponents by a combined 34-3 and have 12 games with at least five goals. Creek made the all-state second team last season, while Keenan made the third team and Wurtz earned an honorable mention.
PHOTO: Flint Powers Catholic’s Mason Smith (10) works to elude a pair of Grand Rapids Catholic Central players during last year’s Division 3 championship game.
Two-Sporter Chavez Enjoys Double Success
February 8, 2021
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
CLINTON – Nathan Chavez took a job at a farm because he wanted to learn more about biology and chemistry. He developed a green thumb.
He joined the Clinton soccer team and helped it to the program’s first District title.
And Chavez was on the cross country team that this fall finished 10th at the MHSAA Finals.
Whatever Chavez touches, he seems to turn to gold.
“I don’t think I have a competitive nature,” Chavez said. “I just enjoy it.”
As calm and collected as Chavez is, he seems to excel at everything he does. In the classroom he takes mainly AP classes and had an adjusted GPA of 4.3 as the first semester of his senior year concluded
He takes everything in stride. But don’t let that fool you, says his father, Clinton varsity boys basketball coach Jeremy Chavez.
“He’s got a lot going on and works really hard,” Jeremy Chavez said. “I’m very proud of him.”
Chavez lives in Tecumseh but started attending Clinton in the second grade. He started running cross country in high school and has been a steady performer for the team, which has been on the cusp of a big Finals finish the last couple of seasons.
He placed just outside the top 10 at the Lenawee County Athletic Association meet and 17th at the Lenawee County meet. At Michigan International Speedway, Chavez finished 117th overall with a time of 17:39.14, which helped Clinton place in the top 10 in Lower Peninsula Division 3.
“Our team has been developing for four years,” he said. “It was great to see it all come together.”
Chavez never could decide which sport he liked better – cross country or soccer. Instead of choosing between the two, he decided to be a dual-sport athlete in the fall. The soccer team lost several seniors from a year ago, and Chavez was unsure what to expect. Clinton, however, won 10 matches and turned some heads with that first District championship.
The District Final was tied 2-2 at the end of regulation and two overtimes, but Clinton won it in a dramatic shootout, sending the team to the Regional for the first time.
“It definitely went better than I expected from last year,” Chavez said. “We did really well this year, all season. We lost a ton of seniors, so I really didn’t know how it was going to go.”
Chavez is grateful his parents – Jeremy and Leslie – allowed him to compete in both sports.
“I have a great support system at home,” he said. “They are very supportive of me in whatever I do.”
Dual-sport athletes typically have to choose which will have priority in the event of a conflict. Chavez said that was never an issue.
“When it came to the more important events, it seems like I could always do both,” he said. “Every year that I did it, it went smoothly.”
He’s glad he didn’t have to choose between the two.
“I started out by running cross country, but over the years I ended up playing soccer. I don’t really have a favorite,” he said. “I just like both sports equally. I feel like I was able to show my talents at both.”
Besides helping those two fall teams bring home hardware, Chavez was celebrated a bit on his own by earning academic all-state honors in both sports, which is no small fete. Not only was he practicing or participating in two sports every night and just about every Saturday, he also had to maintain his high GPA.
“During the season it always seems more hectic,” he said. “I always try to get as much homework done in my free time at school. I always studied on the bus, and there were a few all-nighters too. … My teachers are all very understanding, especially during the season that I dual-sport. They understand.
“When I’m in the moment, I don’t notice how much I really put into it.”
While he won’t be playing a winter sport, Chavez is already gearing up for track season, which is just around the corner. He’ll try to help earn more hardware for a school district that has seen a ton of sports success in recent years.
Chavez was recently accepted into the University of Michigan, something that has been a goal of his for some time. He’s pretty sure he wants to go into chemistry or biology, which is one of the reasons he began working at a Britton farm a few years ago.
“I just enjoy everything,” he said.
Doug Donnelly has served as a sports and news reporter and city editor over 25 years, writing for the Daily Chief-Union in Upper Sandusky, Ohio from 1992-1995, the Monroe Evening News from 1995-2012 and the Adrian Daily Telegram since 2013. He's also written a book on high school basketball in Monroe County and compiles record books for various schools in southeast Michigan. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Jackson, Washtenaw, Hillsdale, Lenawee and Monroe counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Clinton’s Nathan Chavez charges through a stretch in a cross country race. (Middle) Chavez (5) runs down the ball during a soccer match this fall. (Photos courtesy of the Chavez family.