Plenty to Celebrate for Stoney Creek
June 17, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – Happy Birthday, Emily Solek. Happy first championship, Rochester Hills Stoney Creek.
Friday surely will be a milestone day to remember for the lone scorer in this season’s MHSAA Division 1 Final – and also for teammates who with her earned the program’s first girls soccer championship, against most expectations.
Stoney Creek entered the postseason ranked No. 10 in Division 1, the same spot it occupied in the first state coaches poll in mid-April and its highest ranking this spring. But it finished No. 1 Friday, with Solek connecting on a penalty kick with just under 11 minutes to play, giving the junior midfielder a little more to celebrate than ice cream and cake.
“Coming into this season, there were a lot of doubts about this team,” Solek said. “I think just because we had 12 seniors graduating last year, that it was just going to be a new team, new players and hard to get the vibe going.
“I think we were all up for the challenge.”
Stoney Creek’s only other MHSAA championship game appearance came in 2005, in Division 2. The Cougars exited last season in the Regional Semifinal with a shootout loss to Grand Blanc, the eventual Division 1 runner-up.
Given that that team graduated five players who earned all-state recognition, and this season’s team brought back only three seniors, it was fair to not expect much more of a run this time.
But that clearly wasn’t giving Stoney Creek (18-3-3) enough credit.
The Cougars earned their first Regional title since that last championship game run 11 years ago and got to MSU in part by downing No. 2 Utica Eisenhower, No. 4 Novi, No. 7 Utica Ford and No. 14 Troy Athens.
“We just realized that we just have to work our hardest, and then good things will come from that,” Solek said. “Our motto was kinda like, ‘Game by Game,’ and that’s how we took it.”
Stoney Creek had 12 shots Friday to Canton’s four, but only four on goal. Canton’s defense gave up only five goals over seven MHSAA postseason games.
But the Cougars kept pressuring the Chiefs on Friday. Three of those shots on goal came during the second half, and Canton senior keeper Jordan Anheuser made an especially impressive set of stops near the 24-minute mark in the second half when she punched away a crossing pass and then slid into the attack to deflect another shot and diffuse a potential rally.
Stoney Creek received the penalty shot after a long pass was launched in front of the Canton net and an attempted header toward the goal drew the foul. Solek punched her deciding kick into the lower right side of the net because “that’s where I go every time on my PKs,” she said.
“Canton did just a great job of winning the ball in the air and getting us out of the zone,” Stoney Creek coach Bryan Mittelstadt said. “We kept trying to push and push and push. (They have) a very strong back line and a very disciplined goalie. We just kept trying to get through the back line, and it was very difficult all day. “
The Chiefs’ run to East Lansing also was considered unexpected, seeing as they weren’t ranked at the end of the regular season after falling in their last two games before the start of tournament play.
But Canton (18-2-4), seeking its first MHSAA title since 2001, made its point by downing top-ranked Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central 2-1 in the Semifinal.
“It’s a disappointing way to end the season, but I am so proud of my team,” Anheuser said. “To not be ranked and go this far, we were definitely the underdog, and I’m proud of everything we accomplished this season. (We’re) still going out on a good note.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Rochester Hills Stoney Creek hoists its first MHSAA championship trophy in girls soccer Friday at DeMartin Stadium. (Middle) Stoney Creek’s Isabella Langusch (18) and Canton’s Jennifer Richmond work for possession.
Performance: Gull Lake's Reagan Wisser
May 17, 2018
Reagan Wisser
Richland Gull Lake junior – Soccer
The Blue Devils’ all-state forward helped deliver her team a league title and a little bit of vengeance May 9, scoring two goals in Gull Lake’s 3-0 win over Portage Central that clinched the regular-season Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference championship and earned Wisser the Michigan Army National Guard “Performance of the Week.” Wisser then scored two more goals in Monday’s SMAC Tournament semifinal win over Mattawan and all three in Wednesday’s championship game as Gull Lake pulled out a 3-2 overtime victory again over the rival Mustangs.
Gull Lake is 14-0-1 this spring and ranked No. 2 in Division 2, while Portage Central is up to No. 5 in Division 1 in this week’s state coaches association poll. This is the first year all SMAC teams are back in one division; Gull Lake won the last five SMAC East girls soccer championships, and last week’s win made six straight regular-season titles. But those Portage Central victories also meant a little more – during last season’s SMAC Tournament, the Mustangs ended Gull Lake’s four-year league winning streak.
The Blue Devils won three straight Division 2 titles from 2013-15 with Wisser’s older sister Riley playing a prominent role, and Reagan is working to lead Gull Lake back to that former height. A three-year starter, she has 29 goals and five assists this spring and is up to 69 goals for her career. Wisser already is set to continue her career after high school at Western Michigan University, and she carries a 4.0 grade-point average with plans to study nursing.
Coach Jeff Corstange said: “Reagan started out her freshman year trying to fit into our system, understand our system, and sophomore year she grasped onto it. (This season) she’s taken the team under her wings and flown with it. … She’s peaked into a tremendous soccer player. I kinda expected (this success), but I don’t think she expected it. Last year when she was getting man marked, she’d get frustrated. She’d get angry that she didn’t score, didn’t contribute to the team. Now she understands that she’s getting man marked but finding ways with her teammates to get open. She’s getting creative, and we tried to stress with her to be creative. … She’s even better off the field – she’s one of the nicest people you’ll meet.”
Performance Point: “It just shows no matter who we play, we are going to come out and do our best and give everything we’ve got to beat them,” Wisser said of the two Portage Central wins. “Last year they beat us, and we also lost our SMAC championship last year, so we had a lot more energy going in. We knew what it felt like to be on the other side, and we didn’t want that to happen again. … (Wednesday) night was super exciting, and we knew going in it would be a game determined by who wanted it more. Throughout the game, we picked up our intensity – and we won because we wanted it more. Definitely, I try to step up as much as I can, but I couldn’t have done it without the help of my teammates encouraging me and pushing me to be my best.”
Time to lead: “I’ve definitely stepped up my leadership role and encouraged others to step up on the field and to be the best they can be every game, because you never know when it can be your last. I looked up to our past captains the years before and how they picked up each and every player and showed them that they can be their best every game. Especially with the team this year, it’s pretty easy to pick each other up, push each other to play harder and play for everyone else around you. … (Leading) actually makes me a better person, makes me want to step up and it makes me want to play harder for my teammates.”
Winning formula: “The team chemistry that we have is nothing like we’ve had in the years before, and I think this year everybody just wants it more. In years before, when people have made mistakes, we kinda just ignored it and we thought they were hanging their heads. But this year, if anyone makes a mistake, everybody’s surrounding them, and (saying) ‘You’ll get the next one,’ and everybody just picks each other up – and it’s just so much more fun to play that way. It makes a huge difference. If you miss a shot, your teammates aren’t going to be mad at you, and you’ll try your best to get the next one. It picks you up as a player and makes you want to play harder for your teammates.”
Mentors to follow: “I just remember watching (my sister’s) games and watching her playing in the state finals, and all the excitement that she had. It made me want to be in her position, made me want to win states. She told me to just keep my head up, and everything will play out as long as you play as a team and play together. … Grace Labadie, she played at Loy Norrix and is at Western now; I played against her my freshman and sophomore year, and she’s just so amazing on and off the ball, and she just was a great teammate to watch and play against. She taught me some moves, and she just talks to me after games and tells me things I did well and things I can improve on. When we’d beat her in games, she always kinda got mad, but she was like, ‘You need to stop being so good.’ It is (a big compliment).”
Paging Nurse Wisser: “Western has a great nursing program … and it really gets me excited for the future. Ever since I was little, I wanted to go into the medical field because I love helping people in any way that I can.”
- 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:
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) Richland Gull Lake's Reagan Wisser (5) pushes the ball upfield during a game this season. (Middle) Wisser works to get around a defender. (Photos courtesy of the Gull Lake athletic department.)