Northville's Weber Stands Tall in a Crowd
April 25, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Mallory Weber has seen plenty of creative defenses during her four seasons on Northville’s varsity soccer team.
Most of the time, she’s shadowed by two defenders. Sometimes, she’ll draw three. But the most memorable effort came from just one defender last season against rival Novi.
“She followed me everywhere. I went out of bounds, she followed me out of bounds,” Weber remembered Wednesday. “It was pretty quick. I’d stop. She’d stop. She was like on a leash with me.”
Welcome to life as a two-time all-state forward who next season will play for the reigning Big Ten regular-season champion, and this week receives a Second Half High 5 for helping key her team's outstanding start.
Northville is 5-0-2 coming off Tuesday’s 8-0 win over South Lyon, in which Weber scored two goals and had an assist to push her season totals to nine and five, respectively.
She didn’t score in last week’s win over Novi – the Mustangs' first over the Wildcats since 2009 – but that hardly means she didn’t factor in what might be considered the team’s best victory of the last two seasons. Novi had won 40 straight games, including last season’s MHSAA Division 1 Final.
“Novi had her double-teamed at all times and sometimes triple-teamed. This obviously opens up the field for others to execute,” Northville coach Eric Brucker said. “Mallory is the workhorse and on-field leader. Other coaches within our league have pulled Mallory aside after postgame handshakes to voice their admiration for her on-the-field direction.
“She is a great example of trying to do the most for her team – every game, all 80 minutes. The players around her feed off her energy.”
Extra attention from opponents became noticeable to her last season, but didn’t slow Weber as she earned a second-straight all-state first-team selection. She’s picked up some moves to create her own space – usually, she’ll play the ball back, spin off and try to come back to the ball in an effort to gain a few steps.
But she also realizes how much opponents are changing their defenses to account for her – and how much that can benefit a Mustangs team that returned nearly intact from a year ago.
With little opportunity to look up when she got the ball against Novi, Weber was able to one-touch pass to teammates because they’ve grown accustomed to where each other will be positioned.
Among those getting plenty of great looks up front is sophomore Jamie Cheslik, who has six goals and seven assists and scored the game-winner against Novi. Brucker called her the “catalyst,” another who creates plenty of havoc and scoring opportunities.
Weber was not considered that player yet when she got serious about soccer at age 10. She’d played in recreational leagues, but didn’t make the top team in her club that first season – which paid off in the long run because of how hard she worked to become better. But the middle of the next season, she was promoted. And she joined the Mustangs' top team in her first season of high school.
Although Northville has two MHSAA championship game appearances since 2004, all three of Weber’s seasons have ended with losses in arguably the toughest District in the state (which this season includes three teams currently ranked among the top seven in Division 1).
But the Novi win could be the spark for a run Weber has been waiting to lead.
“It’s what I’ve been waiting for each year. We’re on the same page, and it would be great to go out like that on a good note, and good for the program,” Weber said. “We’ve finally come together, and that (win) gave us the confidence we’ll need in the playoffs.”
Click for more about Weber and this week's other High 5s.
PHOTO: Northville's Mallory Weber (14) works the ball upfield while being shadowed by a defender. (Photo courtesy of Shelly Bush Photography.)
Williamston Makes Top Ranking Stand with Historic Championship Win
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
June 18, 2022
EAST LANSING – Williamston made its third appearance in an MHSAA Girls Soccer Final on Saturday. And for the third time, the Hornets were seeking their first championship against longtime powerhouse Hudsonville Unity Christian.
Williamston had lost Finals to the Crusaders in overtime in 2008 and 1-0 in 2010. But consider any lingering Unity nightmares over for the Hornets.
Junior Breyer Fenech blasted in a shot off an assist from Kaley Douglass with 1 minute, 21 seconds to play as Williamston pulled out a heart-stopping 3-2 victory in the Division 3 championship game at Michigan State’s DeMartin Stadium.
“Kaley put it right on my foot,’’ said Fenech. “She and Liz (Bellinger) are both going to play in college. They are great players. They know how to play. I don’t play mid that much, but unfortunately one of our midfielders got hurt the last game. I kind of saw Kaley coming down and I saw an opening and I called for the ball, she was able to get it through and I put it away.’’
Said Douglass: “It was all her. She called for the ball, and I heard her immediately. I slid it through, and it was all her. If she hadn’t gotten my attention, I probably wouldn’t have known she was there. She was the one that finished it, and I’m so thankful she did.’’
The Hornets (17-2-1) entered the postseason ranked No. 1 in Division 1, and Unity Christian (21-2-1) was ranked No. 2.
Unity hadn’t lost since falling to Division 1 contender Hudsonville in the Crusaders’ season opener.
“Their second goal turned the game around,’’ said Unity coach Randy Heethius. “The winning goal was a thing of beauty. Give them a lot of credit. They are a good team. Obviously, we’re disappointed with the way the game turned out. We’re young. I think we have a chance to get back.’’
Super freshman Ava Lutke gave the Crusaders a 2-1 lead with her 26th goal of the season with just over 21 minutes left in regulation. It appeared to be enough.
However, the goal of the game was a 45-yard blast 11 minutes later from senior midfielder Bellinger, a free kick that landed in the right corner of the Unity net.
“It brought a lot of energy; I wasn’t even expecting that,’’ said Bellinger. “I was just trying to get one in there. I think it did bring our energy up. I practice that every single day, hitting balls and redoing it. It was exactly what I was hoping for. We were storming the net and it went in, which is what we were hoping for.’’
Hornets coach Steve Horn wasn’t surprised.
“We’ve been waiting for that,’’ he said of Bellinger. “That was a fantastic free kick. She hit that top shelf. We’ve seen that from Liz all year. We have some great players and some good role players. That was a coming out for Liz. I have been waiting for that for a few games.’’
And it fired up her teammates.
“When she hit that I said this isn’t over. We have 10 minutes left,’’ said Douglass.
The Crusaders entered Saturday having won 10 girls soccer Finals titles – the second-most of any school – with three runner-up finishes, but hadn’t been in a championship game since 2016 when they lost to Flint Powers Catholic.
Williamston’s Emma Gorsline, a junior midfielder, wasn’t at full strength because of a hamstring injury. She was one of seven players who had made either first- or second-team all-state or honorable mention in 2021.
It was amazing that Williamston goalie Abby Pieper was even playing, after suffering a concussion during hockey season and an eye injury that kept her from seeing for a month.
“I think I played about 10 games this year,’’ said a jubilant Pieper. “I had some vision loss. I started feeling better late April, early May. It was a quick season for me, but it paid off.’’
Junior forward Olivia Bosworth, with an assist from Jade Taylor, got the Crusaders on the board less than five minutes into the game to give Unity Christian a 1-0 lead.
A collision in front of the Crusaders' goal 6:05 into the game led to a Douglass penalty shot, which she drove into the net to tie the score at 1-1.
Both teams had chances over the final 33 minutes of the first half, but weren’t able to convert.
Lutke had a great shot to open the second half, but it was stopped by Pieper.
PHOTOS (Top) Williamston’s Kaley Douglass fires a penalty shot during Saturday’s Division 3 Final at DeMartin Stadium. (Middle) The Hornets celebrate during their first championship victory.