Performance of the Week: Northville's Helena McLellan
June 2, 2023
Helena McLellan ♦ Northville
Junior ♦ Soccer
McLellan, a standout midfielder, scored twice in Northville's 3-0 win over Belleville on May 22 to clinch the overall Kensington Lakes Activities Association championship. The Mustangs earned the opportunity to play in that game by claiming the KLAA West title with an 11-0-3 record, and they're 15-0-4 heading into Saturday's Division 1 District Final against Livonia Stevenson.
An accomplished club soccer player, McLellan chose to compete for her high school team this spring for the first time and helped Northville to a No. 2 ranking at the end of the regular season after the Mustangs finished Division 1 runner-up a year ago. Belleville was ranked No. 8 in the final coaches association poll, and McLellan followed up her goals against the Tigers with another in Northville's 3-1 District Semifinal win over Farmington Hills Mercy on Wednesday.
@mhsaasports ⚽️POW: Helena McLellan #performanceoftheweek #soccer #goals #scored #northville #mustangs #conferencechampions #MHSAA #highschoolsports #tiktalk #interview #TikTok #mistudentaid #fyp ♬ Beat Automotivo Tan Tan Tan Viral - WZ Beat
Follow the MHSAA on TikTok.
MHSAA.com's "Performance of the Week" features are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
2022-23 Honorees
May 25: Mitchel Luck, Linden lacrosse - Report
May 18: Ahava Le Febre, Holland tennis - Report
May 11: Gracie Maloney, Macomb Dakota softball - Report
May 4: Braxton Brann, Ann Arbor Huron track & field - Report
April 27: Owen Patton, Vestaburg track & field - Report
April 20: Lilly Damm, Millington softball - Report
April 13: Larissa Huffman, Mackinaw City track & field - Report
April 6: Darius Acuff, Detroit Cass Tech basketball - Report
March 23: Regan Finkbeiner, Hemlock basketball - Report
March 16: Alaina Yaney, Grand Ledge gymnastics - Report
March 9: Braeden Davis, Dundee wrestling - Report
March 2: Gabriel Sanchez-Burks, Ann Arbor Pioneer swimming - Report
Feb. 23: Grace Sobczak, Marquette swimming - Report
Feb. 16: Kaitlynn Demers, Gibraltar Carlson competitive cheer - Report
Feb. 9: Indya Davis, West Bloomfield basketball - Report
Feb. 2: Braydon Sorenson, Onekama skiing - Report
Jan. 26: Shayna Hruska, Iron Mountain wrestling - Report
Jan. 19: Kayla Tafanelli, Warren Woods-Tower bowling - Report
Dec. 20: Brenden Paden, Riverview Gabriel Richard hockey - Report
Dec. 16: Tuff Scott, Holton bowling - Report
Dec. 9: Macey Fegan, Standish-Sterling basketball - Report
Dec. 2: Treyton Siegert, Gladwin football - Report
Nov. 24: Lily Witte, Dexter diving - Report
Nov. 17: Navea Gauthier, Shelby volleyball - Report
Nov. 10: Derek Huisman, Holland Christian soccer - Report
Nov. 3: Thomas Westphal, New Baltimore Anchor Bay cross country - Report
Oct. 27: Justin Wickey, Colon football - Report
Oct. 20: Owen DeMuth, Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood tennis - Report
Oct. 13: Mia Melendez, Ann Arbor Greenhills golf - Report
Oct. 6: Shawn Foster, Grand Ledge football - Report
Sept. 30: Hannah Smith, Temperance Bedford swimming - Report
Sept. 22: Helen Sachs, Holland West Ottawa cross country - Report
Sept. 15: Nina Horning, Lake Orion volleyball - Report
Sept 8: Arturo Romero, Muskegon Oakridge soccer - Report
Sept. 1: Austin King, Midland Dow tennis - Report
Aug. 25: Olivia Hemmila, Troy Athens golf - Report
PHOTO Northville's Helena McLellan steps into a kick during a May 9 draw with Hartland. (Photo by Chris Mudd/National Photo Scout.)
Anchored By Current Star, Dedicated to Past, Stoney Creek Surges Late for D1 Win
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
June 17, 2023
EAST LANSING – Rochester Hills Stoney Creek’s MHSAA Division 1 girls soccer championship battle against Hudsonville was expected to be a low-scoring, high-energy battle Saturday afternoon at DeMartin Field.
It lived up to the billing – and for the Cougars, so much more.
Stoney Creek scored two goals over the final 8 minutes, 41 seconds, both from reigning Miss Soccer Award winner Lilley Bosley, to claim the title with a 2-1 victory.
Bottled up for most of the game, Bosley – headed next to Michigan – bounced in a rebound with 1:49 left to stun the Eagles. It was her 52nd goal of the season.
“We’ve been waiting for this,’’ said Bosley. “We worked in practice on switching the field on the long balls. We recognized on film that they over-shift a lot, and they’re very ball-oriented. That score came off us switching the field. We had a diagonal ball, and then I got our momentum going.’’
Hudsonville (19-3-2) shadowed Bosley all afternoon, including with freshman Lauren Moylan – who was fantastic as a defender and playmaker.
“You put (Bosley) in the midfield, but they had that girl marking her the whole time,’’ said Stoney Creek coach Bryan Mittelstadt. “They had a couple behind her. We had to move her around a little bit to get her more active. We pushed her up a little bit higher. We dropped her a little higher and put her on the left. We tried to mess up their shape a little bit. She puts herself in places where she can be effective.’’
On her winning goal, Bosley said: “We scored a lot of our goals on set pieces. We have really good corner takers. Ava Avripas and Kaeli Butcher are fantastic on the corners. They are very accurate. We knew that we were going to get on the end of one of the corners to score.
“I really thought (today) I had more space than I normally do.’’
Senior defender Lily Solek was playing for the family’s second soccer title, and with her teammates was driven by the memory of her older sister who starred for the Cougars the first time they won it all.
Emily Solek scored the only goal in Stoney Creek’s championship win over Canton on June 17, 2016 – the same date as this victory, seven year ago. A multi-sport standout for the Cougars, Emily Solek died in 2020 after a car crash.
“I had two sisters on that team,’’ said Lily Solek. “Today would have been Emily’s 24th birthday. This means so much. Seven years to the day she scored the winning goal in PK for our state title.’’
Said Bosley: “Lily is my best friend. We’ve been together since little kids. We dedicated this to Emily. It was seven years to the day. With this being her birthday, it just makes it so much better.’’
The Cougars (26-1-1) had defeated top-ranked Rochester High, No. 12 Utica Eisenhower and No. 15 Saline during its run. Hudsonville advanced with wins over No. 2 Northville and No. 7 Portage Central, and hadn’t given up a goal in the playoffs before Bosley’s first Saturday.
Eagles coach Holly VanNoord was a record-setting keeper a decade ago at Unity Christian, which won the Division 3 title Friday, and Hudsonville High also had closed the regular season with a 1-1 draw against her alma mater.
There was plenty of action Saturday but no scoring until senior Raeleigh Woodwyk (playing next at Grand Valley State) booted in a rebound off a shot by Moylan that hit the crossbar to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead 12 minutes into the game.
Stoney Creek’s Madeline McGinlay did her best to tie the score with 15 minutes remaining in the first half, but her shot was deflected over the net.
Junior keeper Reid DeGoede was brilliant for Hudsonville during the first half, and all-state senior Clara Feenstra, next playing at Hope College, took over to start the second and blocked a shot off a centering pass that seemed destined to score.
Bosley finally got loose and tied the game at 1-1 with 8:41 to play off an assist from Megan Kennedy.
PHOTOS (Top) Stoney Creek’s Lily Solek (8) moves the ball upfield during Saturday’s Division 1 Final. (Middle) Hudsonville’s Raeleigh Woodwyk (9) celebrates her goal. (Below) The Cougars’ Laura Palmer (14) and Jessica Kennedy celebrate. (Photos by Adam Sheehan/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)