Middleville T-K Aims to Make Playoff Splash
May 30, 2017
By Dean Holzwarth
Special for Second Half
MIDDLEVILLE – When talking about perennial girls soccer powerhouses in the Grand Rapids area, Middleville Thornapple Kellogg might not be the first that comes to mind.
However, the rural school located south of the big city is beginning to make a name for itself on the pitch.
With a dramatic double-overtime win over Ada Forest Hills Eastern last week, the Trojans clinched a share of their third straight Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold championship.
Before that current three-year run in conference play, Middleville T-K had won only one conference title in school history.
The Trojans enter District play this afternoon with a sparkling 15-2-1 record and ranked No. 9 in Division 2.
“I don’t think we’ll ever get the publicity other teams do, but that’s OK,” seventh-year Trojans coach Joel Strickland said. “We are comfortable with who we are and I think we’re starting to get recognized a little, but maybe as not as much as I think they deserve.”
While winning conference titles has been satisfying, Strickland said postseason success is the key to gaining recognition.
“To win three in a row has been huge, but the next goal is we have to do some damage in the postseason to earn that respect,” he said. “We haven’t won a District title yet. That’s the next step for us.”
The Trojans will face a challenge in their District opener as they host No. 5 Richland Gull Lake, which won three straight MHSAA Division 2 Finals from 2013-15.
This year’s T-K squad includes five talented seniors, four who have committed to play at the college level, and they are confident in their abilities to pull off the upset.
“We would love to win Districts, and as a senior this is my last chance,” said Middleville T-K senior keeper Maddie Hutchins, who helped her team post 12 shutouts this season.
“No one is expecting us to win this game, but I feel like we have a real chance. It would be amazing if we could knock them out in the first round of Districts. I feel like if we’re going to do it, then this is the year. We have the talent, and as long as we play together then I think we’re pretty unstoppable. Don’t underestimate us.”
Another senior, Allexus Barnes, said winning in a District would help in their quest to gain more respect in the area.
“We’ve really grown as a team this year and we’re getting our name out there,” she said. “We’re showing people how strong we are. We have the conference titles, but I think we’re ready for that next step and I hope we can do it this year.”
The Trojans opened the season with a 4-0 loss to Grandville, but since have been on a tear. They’ve allowed only five more goals after those first four, bolstered by the play of Hutchins in net and an improved defense.
After graduating 10 from a year ago, including standout keeper Aly Miller and seven other starters, it took them a while to create their own identity.
“The first game was a little rough, but I think a lot of it was figuring out the communication issues that we may have had because we lost of a lot of senior defenders from last year,” Hutchins said. “After that, we’ve really stepped up and played as a unit and we’ve improved drastically. We’re playing really well in the back right now.”
Other senior contributors have been forward Alyvia Thorne and defenders Taylor Pratt and Breana Bouchard.
This year’s group is just as successful off the field. The squad has a cumulative grade point average of 4.03, and 12 players boast a 4.0 or higher grade point average.
Strickland expresses the importance of being well-rounded individuals who come together for the betterment of the team and the community.
“It’s about the team concept,” he said. “Understanding that it’s not about any individual. It’s about doing it together and doing it the right way. Just making sure it is bigger than just soccer. Doing well in the classroom, integrity and sportsmanship are big parts of the foundation of who we are as a program, and that winning comes with their hard work and putting in the effort out of the season.”
Many of the past and present players have competed together in the local travel Thornapple Area Soccer Club. It has become an avenue for girls to develop and hone their skills.
“That’s been a big part of our success as well,” Strickland said. “It’s an affordable club for kids who can’t afford to play at Midwest United or clubs like that. That has helped us, but this year’s team is a collaboration from all over.”
Many of the girls on the roster also play multiple sports.
“Being a smaller school, you need to have multi-sport athletes and I think that also helps them,” Strickland said. “It helps them work on different concepts. and they don’t get burned out in soccer. Having a break and playing something different is a good thing.”
A close-knit bond also has enabled the team to enjoy the experience.
“I think our camaraderie is awesome, and that’s the best part of our team,” Barnes said. “We all mesh really well together, and it has helped us a lot and brought us success.”
PHOTO: (Top) Middleville Thornapple Kellogg defender Breanna Bouchard (7) works to maintain possession. (Middle) Alyvia Thorne prepares to launch a kick during a game this season. (Photos by Marc Hutchins.)
McBain NMC Continues Rise as Coach VanNoord's Leadership Takes Root
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
May 6, 2022
COVID-19 prevented Jen VanNoord from receiving a proper soccer sendoff as her time guiding Cadillac’s girls program came to a close.
Her McBain Northern Michigan Christian soccer players certainly have given her a proper welcome.
And, Northern Michigan Soccer League opponents should be cautioned, if they haven’t been already.
We’re not talking about soccer’s red card sendoffs and yellow card cautions. VanNoord, who took the helm at Cadillac High School in 2003, built a strong youth program and took the Vikings from near the bottom to always near, if not at, the top of the Big North Conference going head-to-head with Petoskey, Gaylord, Alpena, Traverse City Central and Traverse City West.
At NMC, VanNoord took over for longtime Comets coach Dave VanHaitsma, who had the program heading the right direction. The Comets have very high expectations this season.
“I knew that in order to build a high school program I had to build the youth program and the love for soccer first – and that's what I did – with the help of so many amazing people,” VanNoord enthusiastically recalled of her time at Cadillac. “Building a program definitely didn't happen overnight, but as the love for soccer grew in the community so did our success as a high school program, and that success continues and our girls youth program is strong.”
Cadillac is off to a 6-1-4 start this season. COVID-19 erased what was supposed to be VanNoord’s final season guiding the Vikings. Cadillac knew VanNoord would step down when her daughter, Jada, entered high school and started playing soccer for NMC.
But with the pandemic starting to impact high school sports in the spring of 2020, Cadillac athletic director Fred Bryant was left regretting that the Vikings didn’t get the chance for a proper sendoff. That entire spring season was canceled after just a few weeks of practice because of the coronavirus.
"Coach VanNoord was an outstanding role model and coach for the girls soccer program as well as the entire soccer community here in Cadillac years before my arrival as athletic director in the fall of 2017,” Bryant said. “My short time with her proved to be nothing different than the previous years, as her experience and professionalism were apparent from the time I first met her.
“Unfortunately, we knew in advance that the 2020 season would be her last, but COVID abruptly ended her last season here in Cadillac and we did not get the opportunity to give her the true recognition she deserved,” he continued. “I for one am not surprised at all by the immediate impact that she has had on their program."
The Comets, with VanNoord at the helm, are off to a 9-0 start and 8-0 in league play. They’ll take on Midland Calvary Baptist this afternoon fresh from a 6-0 win earlier this week over Buckley.
Jada VanNoord had three goals and Paige Ebels scored twice against the Bears. Aria Cucinella also scored.
The Comets were 10-2-1 last year, reaching the league title game and advancing to Regionals. They’re hoping to capture the league title again and make a deeper postseason run.
VanNoord focuses on teaching fundamentals daily, constantly giving encouragement and providing an environment allowing players to thrive no matter the circumstance.
“In my opinion the key to success is to get the most out of each player every day and make them into the best player they can be that day,” she said. “This is going to be different for every girl, and it's probably going to be different every day too.
“Then, I take all the individuals and make them into one cohesive group,” she went on. “Soccer is a physically demanding sport especially in the spring, and it's easy to get discouraged and fatigued. And putting players in the right positions to create that cohesive group makes all the difference in winning and losing a game.”
The Comets are led by high-scoring sophomore Jada VanNoord. Onlookers believe she has already set the school’s single-season record for goals.
You won’t get Coach VanNoord to acknowledge stats, or specifics on the job Mabel Yount, Alaina Rozeveld, Maggie Yount and Sol Pacheco have done shutting down opponents' passing lanes this season.
“I am not one to focus on individual stats,” the coach said. “Our success comes from putting each other first.
“Our goal is to make each other great.”
And the Comets don’t rely on one player, Jen VanNoord noted.
“If each member on the team focuses on the other members of the team more than themselves, we can build from there and find success,” she said. “We are successful because we fight for each other, we are relentless for each other, and we constantly build each other up.
“This season we have many tremendous athletes who are fast and physical and strong with a wide variety of soccer specific abilities,” she continued. “No one player can win on their own – it takes every player for us to win.”
She does have to admit it is a dream come true to coach Jada. And she’s coaching the right team despite a continued support for the Vikings.
“Jada plays with so much joy and confidence that it spills over to her teammates and makes us better as a team,” Jen VanNoord said. “As much as I love the players and the program at Cadillac, I didn't want to miss her high school games to keep coaching there.
“The success NMC had last season and so far this season just solidifies the fact that I'm in the right spot at the right time in my coaching career,” she continued. “I have found a new joy for coaching because of my daughter and her NMC teammates.”
Coach VanNoord grew up in Southern California and fell in love with the game of soccer at a young age.
“I played it as often as I could, and in California you can play soccer every day,” she said.
Her family moved to Grand Rapids when she was in high school. She played for Grand Rapids Christian High School and longtime coach Larry Klaasen, who VanNoord describes as “an incredible teacher of the game.”
Klaasen, who also taught history for 21 years at Grand Rapids Christian before retiring, guided the boys soccer program for 32 seasons and the girls for 23. He stepped down as the girls coach after the 2011 season.
VanNoord started her coaching career as the junior varsity coach under Klaasen. She went on to play collegiate soccer at Calvin College.
“I found a lot of success on the field as a player but also had some amazing coaches that continued to make me into a coach that loves to play the game, loves my players and loves teaching the game,” VanNoord said.
Bill Anderson, a longtime youth and high school soccer official and referee assignor, first met VanNoord at a pick-up soccer game shortly after she took the Cadillac job.
“While she is always respectful, she certainly has a way of speaking that gets your attention when she wants to,” Anderson said. “Her players clearly love and respect her.
“Apart from that, the record speaks for itself.”
Tom Spencer is a longtime MHSAA-registered basketball and soccer official, and former softball and baseball official, and he also has coached in the northern Lower Peninsula area. He previously has written for the Saginaw News, Bay County Sports Page and Midland Daily News. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Ogemaw, Iosco, Alcona, Oscoda, Crawford, Kalkaska, Grand Traverse, Benzie, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Presque Isle, Cheboygan, Charlevoix and Emmet counties.
PHOTOS (Top) McBain Northern Michigan Christian’s Jada VanNoord (20) clears the ball against Big Rapids Crossroads backed by defenders Mabel Yount (18), Alaina Rozeveld, Maggie Yount (26) and Sol Pacheco (8). (Middle) NMC coach Jen VanNoord directs her team during the eventual win. (Below) Sofia Rubio (14) controls the ball while Crossroads’ Jackie Cole attempts to gain possession. (Photos by Mike Dunn/Missaukee Sentinel.)