Performance: Lansing Christian's Kasey Jamieson
June 21, 2018
Kasey Jamieson
Lansing Christian senior – Soccer
The four-time all-state forward capped her career Friday with the lone goal of a 1-0 Division 4 championship game victory over Kalamazoo Christian, earning the final Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week” for 2017-18. Her final high school goal secured a second straight Division 4 title for the Pilgrims and gave her 197 goals for her career – the second most in MHSAA history.
Jamieson had 54 goals – tied for 10th most for one season – and 71 total points this spring in helping Lansing Christian to a 19-3-2 record. For the second straight year, she was considered the best player in all of Division 4 as the lone selection from that division to the all-state Dream Team. In addition to her 197 career goals, she’ll make the record book career assists list with 72 – and her 268 career points (over 101 games) rank third all-time. Jamieson also returned to her school’s basketball program this past winter, playing that sport for the first time since freshman year and contributing significantly to the Pilgrims’ 15-7 finish.
Her class valedictorian with a 4.0 grade-point average, Jamieson is drawn to biology and similar sciences and aspires to become a physical therapist. She will study kinesiology and continue her soccer career at Division I Liberty University in Virginia this fall after she joins other college players this summer as part of local United Women’s Soccer League team Lansing United.
Coach Joel Vande Kopple said: “The most visible aspect of Kasey’s impact had obviously been her production on the field, where both the number of goals and assists she had are records at LCS since I've been there. Something that often goes overlooked is her availability to play. She didn't miss any games in her four years, and knowing that she was going to be out there every game really boosted our girls. Her personality is what I've appreciated most about her. Despite all her accolades, she always wanted what was best for the team and to see her teammates succeed.”
Performance Point: “What I'm missing most is just the team,” Jamieson said, recalling her final game with the Pilgrims. “I've been with this team the past five months. Basically every day we see each other, so I guess it's just different not having practice to go to, just not talking to them about the games or what's going to happen, or cheering them on or encouraging them. ... I definitely didn't know going into the (championship) game if I'd be the winning goal, or if I would assist it, or if one of my other teammates would have it. But whatever it was, we would've done whatever we could have to have that goal, no matter who put it in or not. It was so awesome to finish my year off like that. Obviously, I couldn't have done it without any of the girls on the team, so all credit to them. It was just a fun year, a fun way to go out. … Obviously, we worked really hard for it, so I'm so proud of the girls.”
Pilgrim pride: (High school soccer) is so much different because it's more of a team mindset, while club becomes a personal mindset because you're trying to get noticed by colleges, by coaches. High school, we're not doing it for coaches. We're not doing it for scouts. We're doing it because we love this sport and we love each other, and we love to push each other and work together. That's what's different about high school – it's not the personal game, it's all team. And that's what I love about it – especially since our school is K-12, all these girls I've been playing with since I was little.”
Showing the way: “Our school, since we're so small, we get to hang out with the elementary students, which is so fun. You get a kindergarten buddy every year, so most of our kindergarten buddies were at the state championship game. It was so cool. And we all have little siblings that are younger students, so all the siblings brought their friends. So it's not just the high school supporting you, but the entire school. It's a cool environment, and it encourages you to do better. (Coach) talks about how there are these little girls that are looking up to you constantly, and how you act, they're going to notice it.”
Back on the break: “I played basketball all the way up to freshman year, and then I just stopped and I wanted to focus on soccer. I went into senior year like, I missed the sport and I wanted to try it out. It was fun. It definitely was different. It was cool using different workouts because I wanted to use different muscles and work different areas so I could be an overall (well-rounded) player. I shared the position as a point guard and a shooting guard. I played most of the entire game. We did well. ... The coach (Jason Salsbury) is super supportive, and the cool thing about our basketball coach is he was at all of our soccer games cheering us on. And he has two little girls and a little boy who are looking up to us so much, which is just so fun because some of us get to babysit them. So it's just a cool environment. We're just like a family.”
Faith and family: My faith is the most important thing to me. … A cool thing about Liberty that I like, every time before games they prayed, and they prayed for other people. It was even a bigger family than at Lansing Christian, which I loved and that's what I wanted. I went to one of their games – they were playing somewhere in Tennessee, I believe – and a girl on the other team got injured, we we're sitting there watching and then girls that were on the field and off the field starting praying. That right there, I was like ‘OK, I want to go here.’”
- Geoff Kimmerly, Second Half editor
Every week during the 2017-18 school year, Second Half and the Michigan Army National Guard will recognize a “Performance of the Week" from among the MHSAA's 750 member high schools.
The Michigan Army National Guard provides trained and ready forces in support of the National Military Strategy, and responds as needed to state, local, and regional emergencies to ensure peace, order, and public safety. The Guard adds value to our communities through continuous interaction. National Guard soldiers are part of the local community. Guardsmen typically train one weekend per month and two weeks in the summer. This training maintains readiness when needed, be it either to defend our nation's freedom or protect lives and property of Michigan citizens during a local natural disaster.
Previous 2017-18 honorees:
June 14: Erik Fahlen Jr., Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian golf - Read
June 7: Paxton Johnson, Escanaba golf - Read
May 31: Lydia Goble, Schoolcraft softball - Read
May 24: Corinne Jemison, East Kentwood track & field - Read
May 17: Reagan Wisser, Richland Gull Lake soccer - Read
May 10: Clayton Sayen, Houghton track & field - Read
May 3: Autumn Roberts, Traverse City Central tennis - Read
April 26: Thomas Robinson, Wyoming Lee track & field - Read
March 29: Carlos Johnson, Benton Harbor basketball - Read
March 22: Shine Strickland-Gills, Saginaw Heritage basketball - Read
March 15: Skyler Cook-Weeks, Holland Christian swimming - Read
March 8: Dakota Greer, Howard City Tri-County wrestling - Read
March 1: Camree' Clegg, Wayne Memorial basketball - Read
February 23: Aliah Robertson, Sault Ste. Marie swimming - Read
February 16: Austin O'Hearon, Eaton Rapids wrestling - Read
February 9: Sophia Wiard, Muskegon Oakridge basketball - Read
February 2: Brenden Tulpa, Hartland hockey - Read
January 25: Brandon Whitman, Dundee wrestling - Read
January 18: Derek Maas, Holland West Ottawa swimming - Read
January 11: Lexi Niepoth, Bellaire basketball - Read
November 30: La'Darius Jefferson, Muskegon football - Read
November 23: Ashley Turak, Farmington Hills Harrison swimming - Read
November 16: Bryce Veasley, West Bloomfield football - Read
November 9: Jose Penaloza, Holland soccer - Read
November 2: Karenna Duffey, Macomb L'Anse Creuse North cross country - Read
October 26: Anika Dy, Traverse City West golf - Read
October 19: Andrew Zhang, Bloomfield Hills tennis - Read
October 12: Nolan Fugate, Grand Rapids Catholic Central football - Read
October 5: Marissa Ackerman, Munising tennis - Read
September 28: Minh Le, Portage Central soccer - Read
September 21: Olivia Theis, Lansing Catholic cross country - Read
September 14: Maddy Chinn, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep volleyball - Read
PHOTOS: (Top) Lansing Christian's Kasey Jamieson surveys the field during Friday's Division 4 championship game win over Kalamazoo Christian. (Middle) Jamieson pushes the ball ahead; she scored the game's lone goal.
TC West Making Homes Away from Home to Lead Tie-Filled Big North Standings
By
Tom Spencer
Special for MHSAA.com
May 5, 2023
Almost as many Big North Conference girls soccer games have resulted in ties as wins so far this weather-challenged spring.
And, tonight, Petoskey and Traverse City West will play a snow day makeup game that could be the equalizer between wins and ties.
There really is lots of excitement, however, in the Big North. There are two new coaches, Ed Fantozzi at West, and Gregg Supiran at Alpena. Supiran, a longtime assistant at Alpena, succeeded Tim Storch, who is among the winningest coaches in Michigan boys and girls soccer history.
And, hopefully in the fall when the boys take the pitch, West will have its new complex ready for play. If not, the girls team should open it next spring.
West leads the conference at 3-0-1. The tie was at the hands of Gaylord, now 1-1-2. Petoskey enters tonight at 1-0-3. Traverse City Central is 2-1-1. Alpena is 1-2-1 and Cadillac is 1-5-0.
West is coming off a 2-0 win over Cadillac at one of its temporary “home” fields, at the Trojan Athletic Complex. The complex, home of Traverse City Central, opened three years ago after the district’s successful $107-million bond campaign that funded construction. The same bond is funding improvements at West.
West has played most of its home games at Trojans’ complex including a 2-0 win over its rival earlier this spring. A rematch, with Central officially the home team, is scheduled for next week.
Other home games for West, as was the same for the boys last fall, have been played at Keystone County Park, home of Traverse Bay Area Youth Soccer.
The win for West over Central put the Titans in the driver’s seat to repeat as conference champs. Cadillac finished second last year as West’s final-game victory over Petoskey clinched a sixth-straight league title. The Northmen could have garnered a share of the title with a win in that finale. Fantozzi took over the helm from Savanna Wojtanowski, a former West and professional soccer goalkeeper.
Sophomore Gwen Allore picked up her third shutout of the season in the win over Cadillac. Fantozzi notes a strong rotating back line has significantly helped the clean sheet total. Sophomore Dillyn Mohr leads the defense and has kicked in three goals pushing up from the back. The other strong defenders are Jenna Rawlin, Sadie Wares, Ahna Campbell, Abbie Carmien and Beatrice Rooks.
Avery Plummer, a freshman, leads the team in scoring so far with seven goals and two assists. Senior Onalee Gustafson has three goals and two assists. Sophomore Raegan LaCross has three goals.
Fantozzi also credits the “super technical skills” of his midfielders Lila Warren and Mia Dungan, both juniors, and seniors Alessia Plombo and Gustafson, for the Titans’ early-season success.
In addition to the Gaylord tie, West was also tied by Elk Rapids, a strong Division 3 contender. The Elks are 11-0-1 going into their match tonight at Cadillac.
The Titans’ lone loss this year was at the hands of Division 1 No. 6 Troy Athens, 5-0.
Fantozzi already is looking to put the early games behind the team and focus on a deep postseason run he became accustomed to in his last coaching stint at Boyne City.
He led Boyne City to a 2021 Division 3 Final appearance. The Ramblers won three Lake Michigan Conference titles, two Districts, two Regionals and appeared in the Semifinals twice during his five years at Boyne. Fantozzi also won two Lake Michigan Conference titles over five seasons at Harbor Springs.
Fantozzi returned to the sidelines last spring as a volunteer assistant at TC Central. It rekindled the passion he’s had since his playing days at Eastern Michigan University.
“I realized there was more to give,” Fantozzi said of his return. “We have a talented group of girls.
“The potential to go far in both the postseason and regular season is there,” Fantozzi added. “They definitely have the ability – it is there.”
Getting the team to gel in his first year is key, Fantozzi said.
“With these girls, the power to believe – which is amazing what it can do – is just getting started,” he said. “You are only going to see them get better.
“You can lose every conference game and still win a state championship … a District championship,” he continued. “My main goal is to play some attractive exciting soccer.”
West’s girls will return to their school field next spring. The boys may get back on a new pitch this fall. The current field is getting a makeover, and a turf practice and playing field is being installed inside the school’s track. Revamped softball and baseball fields with new dugouts and lights also are underway at West.
Central, too, is getting a turf surface within its track, located on the school’s property. The Trojan Athletic Complex is located offsite on what is commonly known as the U.S. Coast Guard base.
The Titans have plenty of questions to answer with their play.
“Do we want to go all the way to the states? Absolutely,” Fantozzi said. “Do we want to finish at the top of the BNC? Yes we do.
“But I am not going to cry if we don’t.”
West and Central will compete in Division 1 postseason play. Alpena, Gaylord, Cadillac and Petoskey will play in Division 2.
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) Traverse City West coach Ed Fantozzi talks things over with Raegan LaCross during a game this season. (Middle) Onalee Gustafson (7) moves the ball upfield as the Titans play at Keystone County Park. (Below) Fantozzi huddles with his team at Trojan Athletic Complex, home of neighbor Traverse City Central. (Photos by Tina Rawlin.)