East Grand Rapids Begins New Reign
June 8, 2019
By Perry A. Farrell
Special for Second Half
NOVI – Less than a minute into Saturday’s Division 2 Girls Lacrosse Final at Novi High School, East Grand Rapids began to assert its dominance against Bloomfield Hills Marian.
And playing a flawless, turnover-free first half, the Pioneers piled up 18 goals on the way to a resounding 22-7 victory to clinch their sixth championship in eight years.
The Pioneers (24-2) had won five straight titles before losing to Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood in the 2017 championship game and not making the Finals last season.
EGR’s high-powered offense scored at least 20 goals in each of its six tournament games this spring.
“We had five really strong seniors, and we had five freshmen come in,’’ said coach Rich Axtell. “It’s a real mixture of age and youth. Last year, we had pretty much the same lineup, but some freshmen have come up and really made a difference.’’
Seniors Mary Schumar (six goals) and Audrey Whiteside (five) led the first-half onslaught as EGR built a 14-goal lead. Both finished with seven goals and were taken out of the game with more than five minutes to play.
“We wanted it so much this year for the seniors,’’ said Whiteside. “I was a freshman when we won it (2016). Mary and I have worked well together. They put me on attack so I could work with Mary so we could get more points. I love working with her. We work together on the draw, and it just came together so well this year.’’
Said Axtell: “Audrey and Mary are once-in-a-decade type of players. Between the two of them, they have 350 points this season. They had an amazing year.’’
The Pioneers wasted little time scoring, as Whiteside found the net the first time 50 seconds into the game for a 1-0 lead. Thirteen seconds later, Schumar scored to make it 2-0. Whiteside quickly scored her second goal and the Pioneers were rolling, up three goals with Marian failing to put together an offensive rush. Schumar followed suit, scoring 38 seconds later to put the Mustangs in a 4-0 hole.
Mia Hannawa finally got the Mustangs on the board with her first goal to trim the deficit to three. Maura Mustion scored for Marian (20-2) to stem the tide and get the Mustangs back into the game at 4-2.
EGR got a goal from Caroline Grin with 19:22 left in the first half to go ahead 5-2. Josie Mehney scored seconds later as the Pioneers extended their lead. Whiteside scored her third of the game to make it 7-2. Schumar scored her third on a penalty power-play shot to make it 8-2 while Marian was a player short.
Sophie Forstner made it 9-2 for the eventual winners with a power-play goal, and Marian coach Sherry Elliott was forced to call a timeout with her team reeling. Schumar scored her fourth, and the rout was on as the Pioneers surged ahead 10-2. Schumar’s fifth goal made it 11-2 with 15:04 still left in the first half.
Coco Chinonis finally ended the Pioneers’ scoring run with a goal to make it 11-3.
Anna Knuble, Whiteside and Lizzie Lundeen scored the next three goals for EGR as they took a 14-3 lead, and Whiteside tacked on her fifth as the Pioneers never let up in taking a 15-3 lead.
Schumar’s sixth increased it to 16-3 as the Mustangs had no answer for the East Grand Rapids fast-paced offense.
“We wanted it so much this year because we have five seniors,’’ said Schumar. “We needed this. In the first half I think our defense was unbeatable. We have one of the fastest defenders in Olivia Grogan. Anna Knuble is really good. She’s just a junior, and she’s going to have a big senior year.’’
Lundeen scored her second goal and Paige Leistra got on the board as the 18-3 lead produced a running clock.
Marian finally challenged EGR goalie Lily Kate Rogers, but the senior came up with three saves. Schumar tacked on her seventh goal to make it 21-5 as time and Marian’s hopes were running out.
“We lose five seniors, but we have lots of talent coming back,’’ said Marian coach Sherry Elliott. “I see big things for us, and I see some young ones coming up.’’
PHOTOS: (Top) East Grand Rapids' Audrey Whiteside (24) fires a shot at the Marian net Saturday. (Middle) Mary Schumar (12) and Marian's Coco Chinonis battle for position.
Super Scorer Marosi, Grand Rapids Catholic Central Complete Perfect Run
By
Jeff Bleiler
Special for MHSAA.com
June 7, 2024
ANN ARBOR — As the final minutes dwindled to seconds, Joe Curcuru was content knowing No. 22 possessed the ball.
It was fitting that Claire Marosi had the ball last as the clock struck zero and the celebration was on for the Grand Rapids Catholic Central girls lacrosse team, which completed an undefeated season by beating defending Division 2 champion Detroit Country Day 10-9 in the Final at University of Michigan Lacrosse Stadium.
Marosi, a senior, added two massive fourth-quarter goals to the 152 she already had scored this year as the Cougars completed a 23-0 season and collected their second Finals trophy and first since 2011.
But after defeating Country Day twice this season by 17-7 and 20-7 scores, the Cougars needed just about every second to fend off the Yellowjackets. And that was no surprise to Curcuru.
“They’re a terrific team. To be the best, you have to beat the best. And they’re the defending state champ. We knew it would be a battle back and forth,” said Curcuru, who had led Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern/Eastern to Division 1 runner-up finishes the last two seasons before making the move to Catholic Central.
Hadley Keating opened the scoring for Country Day just 14 seconds into the game, followed swiftly by a Sarah Rott answer 11 seconds later that tied the game at 1-1. Catholic Central poured in four more first-quarter goals — two each from Cate Marshall and Mairin Ziegler — to sit ahead 5-1.
“I think we started a little bit slow, and that kind of got us on our heels,” said Country Day coach Liz Nussbaum, whose team finished 17-4-1 with three losses to Catholic Central. “But I’m so proud of how our team was able to push back and not let a couple runs get us down.”
Mary Pavlou scored the first of her three goals for Country Day in the second quarter, and after Rott re-established a four-goal cushion for the Cougars, Olivia Winowich and Emma Arico pulled the Yellowjackets to within 6-4 inside of two minutes to play in the first half. Marshall’s third goal of the game gave the Cougars a 7-4 halftime lead.
The third quarter was all Country Day as Arico added two more scores and Pavlou had her second of the game to pull Country Day even entering the fourth. Country Day outshot Catholic Central 21-7 over the middle two quarters, including 10-2 during the third.
Keating gave Country Day an 8-7 lead 1:34 into the fourth, and that seemed to ignite Marosi and the Cougars. Curcuru moved her to the draw circle, and Marosi responded with back-to-back goals 1:15 apart to restore her team’s lead.
“I think it was a game of swings,” Marosi said. “(Country Day) had the momentum, then we had the momentum. Just to finish with momentum on our side was really helpful. I think we all knew when it comes down to it, we would pull it off.”
Rott scored what proved to be the game-winner midway through the fourth quarter, but Country Day was not done, pulling within one on Pavlou’s goal with 4:17 to play. Catholic Central goalie Samaya Dean, who finished with 10 saves, made a massive one with less than two minutes to play by turning away what would’ve been the game-tying goal.
That’s about the time Marosi took control of the ball, drawing two penalties inside the final minute while playing keep-away and bleeding the clock.
“I told her after the game, there is nobody else in the state of Michigan I want with that ball than her,” Curcuru said. “It felt long, but it also felt good because I knew 22 had it for us.
“Claire not only is an incredible athlete, she’s so competitive and such a great leader. To have someone who can say, ‘When things are going tough, jump on my back. I’ll carry you a little bit.’ And that’s what Claire does for us every single day. And you saw it today. When we needed her the most, she came up the biggest.”
Marosi is heading to Northwestern University to play lacrosse after finishing with the third-most goals all-time for a single season with 154.
Catholic Central’s 10 goals were its fewest of the season and came after the Cougars outscored their first four postseason opponents by a combined 85-23. Nussbaum credited her team’s defense and the play of goalie Campbell Lindner for limiting the Cougars’ potent offense.
“Campbell really stepped up in the net. I‘m really proud of how she was able to make some of those key saves in those key moments,” Nussbaum said. “We definitely made tweaks (from the previous two games against Catholic Central), but at the end of the day I believe in the quality of our athletes.”
PHOTOS (Top) Grand Rapids Catholic’s Central’s Claire Marosi (22) works to gain possession while chased by a pair of Country Day players Friday. (Middle) The Cougars’ Cate Marshall (1) flips the ball to teammate Sarah Rott while Country Day’s Sadie Rifkin (17) guards the net. (Below) The Cougars celebrate their first Finals championship since 2011.