Preview: Kent vs Oakland, Part II
June 10, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
For the second straight season, the best of Oakland County will try to wrest away the MHSAA girls lacrosse championships from the best of Kent County when Division 1 and 2 Finals are played Saturday at Brighton High School.
Rockford has won the last three Division 1 titles and East Grand Rapids has won the last four in Division 2. But the challengers have plenty of prestige as well; Birmingham United is tied with Rockford for most titles in Division 1 history with four, and Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood faced the Pioneers in the Division 2 championship game only a year ago.
The Division 1 Final will be played at 2 p.m., followed by Division 2 at 4:30. Both will be broadcast on MHSAA.tv, available with subscription, with audio available on MHSAANetwork.com. Click for more information, including all tournament results.
Below is a look at all four contenders, with player statistics through Regional Finals.
Division 1
BIRMINGHAM UNITED
Record/rank: 14-6, No. 3 at end of regular season
League finish: First in Oakland Activities Association
Coach: Jen Dunbar, 14th season (record N/A)
Championship history: Four Division 1 titles (most recent 2012).
Best wins: 13-9 and 19-8 (Regional Final) over No. 5 Bloomfield Hills, 15-11 and 17-9 (Regional Semifinal) over No. 7 Grosse Pointe South, 7-6 over Division 2 No. 4 Okemos, 10-6 over Division 2 No. 3 Grand Rapids Catholic Central.
Players to watch: Anna Stachler, sr. A (72 goals); Danielle Augier, jr. A/M (55 goals).
Outlook: Birmingham is back in an MHSAA Final for the first time since 2012, with only two of its losses this season to Michigan teams and two defeats by only a goal apiece. The lineup includes eight seniors, and Stachler had seven more goals in Wednesday’s Semifinal win to give her 79 this season; that total is tied for 16th most for one season in MHSAA history.
ROCKFORD
Record/rank: 19-2, No. 1 at end of regular season
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference Tier 1
Coach: Mike Emery, ninth season (160-39-6)
Championship history: Four Division 1 titles (most recent 2015)
Best wins: 13-8, 15-9 and 9-8 (Regional Final) over No. 2 Grand Rapids Forest Hills United; 9-3 over Division 2 No. 1 East Grand Rapids, 19-10 over Division 2 No. 2 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood.
Players to watch: Alexandra Vandermolen, sr. M (45 goals, 34 assists); MeKenzie Vandermolen, soph. M (37 goals, 24 assists); Grace Gunneson, sr. A (43 goals, 30 assists).
Outlook: The Rams have won three straight Division 1 championships, and standouts Alexandra Vandermolen and Grace Gunneson are two of only six seniors. The only losses this spring were by a goal to East Grand Rapids (since avenged) and by two to Illinois powerhouse Loyola Academy. Rockford also owns a pair of wins over Division 2 No. 3 Grand Rapids Catholic Central (15-2 and 16-5) and another over Division 2 No. 4 Okemos (13-5).
Division 2
BLOOMFIELD HILLS CRANBROOK KINGSWOOD
Record/rank: 17-6, No. 2 at end of regular season
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Division 1
Coach: Greg Courter, second season (35-10)
Championship history: Division 2 runner-up 2015.
Best wins: 11-5 and 9-6 over No. 3 Grand Rapids Catholic Central, 15-10 over Division 1 No. 3 Birmingham United, 17-9 over Division No. 4 Bloomfield Hills Marian, 21-11 over Division 1 No. 5 Bloomfield Hills.
Players to watch: Grace Giampetroni, sr. M (52 goals, 52 assists); Isabelle Scane, soph. M (115 goals, 26 assists); Brigitte Ballard, soph. G (8.31 goals-against average).
Outlook: After making their first championship game appearance just a year ago, the Cranes are back. Scane had six more goals in the Semifinal win over Farmington Hills Mercy, and her 121 overall rank second in MHSAA history for one season. Cranbrook Kingswood has outscored its four postseason opponents by an incredible combined score of 88-20, and that group of opponents included No. 7 Bloomfield Hills Academy of the Sacred Heart and No. 10 Detroit Country Day.
EAST GRAND RAPIDS
Record/rank: 16-4, No. 1 at end of regular season
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Tier 1
Coach: Rich Axtell, seventh season (136-21)
Championship history: Division 2 champions 2015, 2014, 2013 and 2012.
Best wins: 14-7 over No. 4 Okemos in the Semifinal, 9-8 and 15-12 over No. 2 Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood, 8-7, 12-7 and 11-9 (Regional Final) over No. 3 Grand Rapids Catholic Central; 11-10 over Division 1 No. 1 Rockford, 14-2 over Division 1 No. 2 Grand Rapids Forest Hills United.
Players to watch: Lindsay Duca, jr. A (22 goals, 66 assists); Auden Elliott, jr. M (59 goals, 10 assists); Audrey Whiteside, fr. M (55 goals, 10 assists)
Outlook: So much for rebuilding. The four-time reigning champions graduated a strong group after last season’s title but have stormed back with help from a freshman phenom in Whiteside. Duca had six more assists in the Semifinal, and 72 would put her fifth all-time for a single season. The Pioneers’ only in-state losses were in rematches to Division 1 top-ranked Rockford and Forest Hills United; they also have two wins over Division 2 No. 6 Caledonia and one apiece over Division 1 No. 3 Birmingham United and No. 5. Bloomfield Hills.
PHOTO: Cranbrook Kingswood goalie Brigitte Ballard gathers a shot while a pair of East Grand Rapids players circle the net during last season's Division 2 Final.
Rams Prove Too Tough Again in D1
June 7, 2014
By Butch Harmon
Special for Second Half
ROCKFORD – Playing the final game of her high school lacrosse career, Rockford senior Meghan Datema was determined not to see another team celebrate winning an MHSAA title on her team’s home field.
Datema knew that feeling – but for the second year in a row it was Datema and her teammates who defended their home field and came away with a Division 1 lacrosse title.
Thanks to a strong start and some stingy defense, the Rams won a second straight MHSAA Division 1 lacrosse championship as they defeated Ann Arbor Pioneer 16-7.
“In my sophomore year we lost in the state Semifinals,” Datema said. “The state (Final) was held here at Rockford and it was not a good feeling watching another team win the state title and celebrate on our home field. We were ready this year. We were focused, and we came out ready to play.”
Rockford came out strong on both ends of the field as the Rams jumped to a 5-1 lead.
The two teams came into the match familiar with each other as Rockford edged Pioneer 10-9 earlier this year. So despite an early lead, the Rams knew it would not be an easy task putting the Pioneers away.
Pioneer battled back and cut the Rams’ lead to 5-4 before Datema scored back-to-back goals to give her team a 7-4 advantage.
“We were missing a couple of girls the first time we played them,” Rockford coach Mike Emery said. “It was also the day before spring break, so it was getaway day. We had 22 turnovers that day. Today we had eight. We did a lot better job taking care of the ball and in possession today. Our defense also did a great job today. We didn’t allow them to score for most of the second half.”
Rockford closed the first half up 13-5 after a 5-0 run. The Rams’ defense set the tone and carried the strong play into the second half.
Rockford upped its lead to 15-5 minutes after the break and held Pioneer scoreless until it added a pair of late goals.
“Winning this title was real special,” Rockford senior defender Aimee Hite said. “We lost a lot of defenders throughout the season, so seeing how the defense came together and how strong they played was real exciting. We pretty much held them without a goal the entire second half.”
In goal, the Rams received a solid effort from junior goalkeeper Katie Elwell, who finished the game with nine saves.
“This is just incredible,” Elwell said. “I never thought I would have this experience of winning it two years in a row. You just can’t describe this feeling. I’m so proud of all the players; we all just worked super hard.”
The Rams were paced on offense by Datema, who finished the game with five goals and one assist. Sophomore Alex Vandermolen added four goals.
Datema and Vandermolen have been big offensive producers all season. Datema came into the title game with 58 goals, while Vandermolen entered with 50.
Senior Kyleigh Egnatuk also ended her career in a big way with three goals and an assist.
“We worked very hard this season,” Egnatuk said. “We knew we had to put in a lot of work to get to where we wanted to be. Winning another state title was our main goal. We definitely knew how hard we had to work to do it again.”
Jumping to a lead was a key and something the Rams wanted to accomplish against a team they defeated by just one goal earlier this season.
“I thought today we came out strong and focused,” Egnatuk said. “That showed when we came out and scored those five early goals. I thought in the first game that we played against them we had a lot more turnovers, and that was something we cleaned up today.”
Winning a second title also was more difficult.
“It was definitely harder,” Egnatuk said. “It felt like we had a big target on our back all season.”
“It was so special to end the season on our home field winning a second state championship,” Datema added. “It was the perfect ending. Both of these state titles have been picture perfect. This one may have been more special because it was the last game of my career.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Rockford’s Alex Vandermolen (11) works to get past Ann Arbor Pioneer’s Mercedes Reyes during the Division 1 Final. (Middle) Rockford and Pioneer players scramble for a loose ball during the Rams’ 16-7 win.