Comeback Rams Net 4th Straight D1 Title
June 11, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
BRIGHTON – The MHSAA Division 1 girls lacrosse championship will be staying with Rockford for another – and fourth straight – season.
And what’s more, it will be staying in the Vander Molen family for another year as well after a clutch run by middle sister Mekenzie late in the second half of Saturday’s championship game at Brighton.
The sophomore attack scored the tying and go-ahead goals over a minute with just under six to play as the Rams came back after trailing most of the afternoon to down Birmingham United 12-9 in the first MHSAA Final matchup between the two powerhouses.
Senior Alexandra Vander Molen has been one of Rockford’s top players throughout this four-season title run and will continue her career at Ohio State University. But she was mostly left out of the scoring in her final high school game, with Mekenzie netting three goals and freshman sister Karrington adding one to help send oldest sister off with one more win.
“It meant a lot for me to be on the same team as my sister for this last championship for her,” Mekenzie Vander Molen said. “I’ve learned almost everything from my older sister. I’ve learned how to take better shots, better passes, certain things in certain situations.
“She said, ‘You’ve played a very good game. I’m very proud of you.'”
Birmingham was seeking its first MHSAA title since 2012, and together, the two programs have won nine of the 12 Division 1 championships since girls lacrosse playoffs became MHSAA-sponsored in 2005.
Mekenzie Vander Molen scored her first goal with 11:50 to play in the first half and the Rams trailing 4-0.
The Bulldogs (14-7) dominated off the start and thwarted nearly every attempt Rockford (20-2) made to get back in the game – in large part with the scoring of senior Anna Stachler, whose seven goals tied for second-most in an MHSAA girls lacrosse championship game.
“We threw everything we had at them,” Birmingham coach Jen Dunbar said. “We played hard. They stepped up when they needed to. I can’t pick apart any part of our game. I think we played a great game.”
Rockford drew even for the first time, at 7-7, when Alexandra Vander Molen scored her lone goal with 16:22 to play. Birmingham retook the lead twice on Stachler goals, but Mekenzie Vander Molen's score at 5:46 ended the Bulldogs’ advantage for the last time.
The Rams finished the season on an 11-game winning streak and lost only once to an in-state opponent, by a goal early to East Grand Rapids before later avenging that defeat with a six-goal win.
“Really, it’s just telling the girls to keep their heads in it, and then continue to work,” Rockford coach Mike Emery said of the final comeback. “And we had some other games like that this year. We went down to Illinois and played two really tough teams (Hinsdale Central and New Trier), and we were behind at halftime in both of those and won both of those, and that really helped to prepare us for today, I think.”
Senior Grace Gunneson also had three goals for Rockford, and senior goalie Briana Houle came up with a number of key saves as the Rams became only the sixth team this season to hold Birmingham to fewer than 10 goals.
PHOTOS: (Top) Rockford players swarm coach Mike Emery to take hold of their Division 1 championship trophy. (Middle) The Rams’ Mekenzie Vander Molen works for possession against Birmingham’s Grace Fischer.
Make it 4 Straight for East Grand Rapids
June 6, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
ROCKFORD – “Dynasty” is too easily thrown around in describing sports teams.
But East Grand Rapids’ girls lacrosse program has earned that level of distinction with its success over the last four seasons.
The top-ranked Pioneers’ finished their fourth straight MHSAA Division 2 championship run with a 19-6 win over second-ranked Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood on Saturday at Rockford High School.
In doing so, East Grand Rapids also made it four seasons without losing to a Michigan team, a streak that began with the first game of 2012. The Pioneers finished this spring 24-1, losing only to the team from Medina, Ohio, while picking up wins as well on the road at Illinois powers Hinsdale Central and Wilmette Loyola Academy.
“It was a goal of ours to send a message throughout the state, and the country. And we went out and played Illinois teams, and succeeded,” said Pioneers senior Liza Elder, who finished her final season as one of the top single-season and career scorers in MHSAA history. “We had a lot of girls playing together for a long time, and I just think we were great leaders to the underclassmen and really bonded this year.”
East Grand Rapids’ last loss to a Michigan team came in an overtime Regional game in 2011 against eventual Division 2 champion Grand Rapids Catholic Central.
Total, the Pioneers are 92-5 over the last four seasons – with seniors Elder, Jane Goodspeed, Emily French and Elle O’Connell part of the lineup for the entirety.
“Two years ago, the class of 2013 has a similar run. They took a little longer to jell, but this senior class had those upperclassmen to bring them along,” East Grand Rapids coach Rich Axtell said. “This class is clearly our best class, the best team we’ve ever put on the field. They set a really high bar for the underclassmen, and the underclassmen know it.”
A total of 12 seniors also played roles on the 2014 championship team before helping the Pioneers take another step toward an unprecedented run. No other team has won four straight titles in MHSAA girls lacrosse history; two other teams won three straight.
Only three opponents this season scored in double figures on East Grand Rapids, which beat reigning Division 1 champion Rockford twice among its most notable instate wins.
“If a team beat us, they could claim that for years and years,” Pioneers sophomore Lindsay Duca said. “Our coach emphasizes that we can’t have a bad day. We can’t let one thing upset us; if one person is playing badly, the whole team has to pick each other up.
“(The Medina loss) was a couple weeks ago, and we came right back at it, really motivated.”
Cranbrook Kingswood scored first Saturday, only 45 seconds in on a shot by senior Maddy Weber. The score was knotted 2-2 after 10 minutes before Duca scored the second of her five goals to start a 5-0 run. Elder had two of her seven goals during another five-goal run during the second half.
Elder finished this season with 119 goals, second most in one season since lacrosse became an MHSAA-sponsored sport in 2005. Duca also had five assists Saturday.
Cranbrook Kingswood (18-4) played in its first MHSAA Final, led by first-year coach Greg Courter, who formerly coached girls lacrosse in California and Colorado.
The Cranes eliminated three top-10 teams during the tournament, and their other three losses this season were all by only one goal apiece.
Freshman Isabelle Scane had three of the team’s six goals and an assist, and Weber – one of six seniors – scored twice.
“I said (to my team after), someday we’ll be holding up the other trophy, and when we do that, it will be dedicated to the seniors,” Courter said. “This is our first year together, and we give them all the credit for us making to the state final for the first time ever.”
PHOTOS: (Top) East Grand Rapids claimed its fourth straight Division 2 championship Saturday. (Middle) The Pioneers’ Liza Elder (9) moves the ball upfield with Cranbrook Kingswood’s Leah Dolik giving chase.