Preview: How Will These Stories End?
June 13, 2019
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
While it’s convenient when previewing a Finals series to find a common theme bonding all four games, sometimes that’s just not possible.
Sometimes, like this weekend, the stories are unrelated – but all worth the price of admission.
In Division 1, reigning champion Novi is attempting to repeat without one of its top players against a Plymouth team seeking its first title. The Division 2 Final will match up Bloomfield Hills Marian and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern for the third straight season.
Essexville Garber in Division 3 and Royal Oak Shrine Catholic in Division 4 are playing in Finals for the first time. Kalamazoo Christian is back after finishing Division 4 runner-up the last two seasons, and Garber’s Division 3 opponent Grand Rapids South Christian is one of three teams among the final eight that didn’t win its league but can end this spring with a victory.
Following is this weekend’s schedule:
Division 1 - Saturday - 4 p.m.
Novi vs. Plymouth
Division 2 - Friday - 4 p.m.
Bloomfield Hills Marian vs. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Division 3 - Friday - 1 p.m.
Grand Rapids South Christian vs. Essexville Garber
Division 4 - Saturday - 1 p.m.
Kalamazoo Christian vs. Royal Oak Shrine Catholic
Tickets cost $8 and include admission to the softball and baseball games also being played at MSU’s Old College Field. Radio broadcasts of all games can be heard online at MHSAAnetwork.com. All games will be streamed live online at MHSAA.tv and viewable on subscription basis. (Click for brackets, scores and a parking map.)
All statistics below are through Regionals.
Division 1
NOVI
Record/rank: 27-0-1, No. 1
League finish: First in Kensington Lakes Activities Association West
Coach: Todd Pheiffer, fifth season (84-17-15)
Championship history: Six MHSAA titles (most recent 2018).
Players to watch: Avery Fenchel, jr. F (24 goals, 14 assists); Jessie Bandyk, sr. M (10 goals, 15 assists); Lauren Calhoun, sr. D (2 assists); Eva Burns, soph. D (1 goal).
Outlook: Improving on a championship season of course is difficult. But one more win would do it for the Wildcats, who can finish unbeaten after totaling five losses in 2018 and earlier won their league after finishing third last spring. And Novi has done it after losing sophomore keeper Abbey Pheiffer (0.16 goals-against average) to a season-ending injury – but freshman Sammy Maday (0.14) stepped in and the team hasn’t missed a beat. Fenchel and Bandyk were all-state first teamers last season, and Calhoun and Burns earned honorable mentions. Senior forward Julia Stadtherr ranks second in scoring with 17 goals, and senior forward Lexi Whalen has added nine and 13 assists.
PLYMOUTH
Record/rank: 19-4-1, No. 5
League finish: Second in KLAA East
Coach: Jeff Neschich, 15th season (record N/A)
Championship history: Division 1 runner-up 2010.
Players to watch: Kennedy White, sr. F; Rebecca Przybylo, sr. GK. (Stats not submitted.)
Outlook: Plymouth won its first Regional title since 2010 on the way to advancing to a Final for the second time in program history. These Wildcats avenged a regular-season loss to No. 13 Troy in the Semifinal, and will attempt to continue that streak after falling to Novi twice. The only other loss, and the tie, came to No. 11 Hartland. White made the all-state first team last season for the second straight, and Przybylo made the third team as a sophomore.
Division 2
BLOOMFIELD HILLS MARIAN
Record/rank: 17-1, No. 2
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Central
Coach: Barry Brodsky, 18th season (334-27-36)
Championship history: Seven MHSAA titles (most recent 2018), three runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Jansen Eichenlaub, sr. F (23 goals, 7 assists); Sara Stroud, sr. M (4 goals, 6 assists); Anna Leonard, jr. M (1 goal, 1 assist); Kate Biglin, jr. M (4 goals, 9 assists).
Outlook: Marian is heading to the championship game for the third straight season hoping for a third straight Division 2 championship. Plenty of Marian’s best have won before – Eichenlaub made the all-state first team last season, while Leonard and Stroud made the second, senior defender Neve Badalow made the third and junior forward Chloe Aberlarde (two goals this spring) earned honorable mention. Sophomore forward Maria Askounis is the team’s second-leading scorer with eight goals and 10 assists off the bench, and senior mid Sydney Petoskey has seven goals as another super sub.
GRAND RAPIDS FOREST HILLS NORTHERN
Record/rank: 19-2-1, No. 6
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference White
Coach: Daniel Siminski, sixth season (105-18-11)
Championship history: Four runner-up finishes (most recent 2018).
Players to watch: Parker Hutchinson, jr. G (0.60 goals-against average, .848 save percentage); Elyse DeSchryver, jr. F (28 goals, 18 assists); Grace Sayers, soph. F (25 goals, 2 assists); Alyssa Greshak, jr. F (10 goals, 10 assists).
Outlook: Forest Hills Northern is hoping to break through after three straight championship game losses. The Huskies’ only losses during the regular season were to top-ranked DeWitt and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central, which reached the Division 1 Semifinals. DeSchryver made the all-state third team last season and leads the scoring for a team that has netted 106 goals and given up only 16. In addition to DeSchryver, Sayers and Greshak, sophomore Emily Vander Hoff has 11 goals off the bench, and senior Carlye Fatum has 12 assists as a starting mid.
Division 3
GRAND RAPIDS SOUTH CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 19-3-3, No. 5
League finish: Second in O-K Gold
Coach: Brian Broekhuizen, sixth season (99-31-12)
Championship history: Division 3 champion 2013.
Players to watch: Annika Zuverink, sr. GK (0.22 goals-against average, .930 save percentage); Cassidy Broekhuizen, sr. F/M (10 goals, 5 assists); Joz VanTol, sr. F/M (6 goals, 8 assists); Emma DeVries, jr. F (14 goals, 5 assists).
Outlook: South Christian also is coming off its second Regional title on the way to this second Finals appearance. The Sailors got here in part by winning a shootout with No. 6 Allegan in the Regional Final and then downing No. 8 Boyne City in the Semifinal. South Christian has 19 shutouts and eight straight including a scoreless run through all six tournament games. Zuverink earned an all-state honorable mention last season, while VanTol and senior defender Morgan Rottman made the third team.
ESSEXVILLE GARBER
Record/rank: 22-0-2, No. 7
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference East
Coach: Troy Stewart, 15th season (164-116-22)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Rachel Hahn, sr. F (30 goals, 22 assists); Teagan Betzold, fr. F (29 goals, 16 assists); Natelle Vantol, jr. M (14 goals, 16 assists); Logan Rau, sr. GK (0.42 goals-against average, 16 shutouts).
Outlook: Just three years ago, Garber was finishing its third straight sub-.500 season – but was on the verge of this climb. The Dukes went from eight wins in 2016 to 13 the next season and 15 last spring. In addition to the unbeaten record this season, Garber also won its first Regional title before upsetting No. 2 Warren Regina in the Semifinal. Hahn earned an all-state honorable mention as a junior, and she’s one of seven Dukes who had scored at least nine goals entering this week including also senior Isabel Baranski (14 goals, 11 assists). Rau actually made it 17 shutouts on the season with another Tuesday and has given up only eight goals all spring.
Division 4
KALAMAZOO CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 21-2-2, No. 3
League finish: First in Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley
Coach: Jay Allen, sixth season (114-19-13)
Championship history: Four Division 4 titles (most recent 2008), two runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Sarah Miller, jr. M/D (9 goals, 21 assists); Lauryn Mohney, jr. M/D (16 goals, 12 assists); Kayla Beebe, sr. M/F (36 goals, 7 assists); Emma Bertrand, sr. M/F (19 goals, 8 assists).
Outlook: Kalamazoo Christian has come up just short the last two seasons, falling 1-0 in last spring’s Final and in a shootout in 2017, both times to Lansing Christian. The Comets have outscored their opponents this spring by a combined 120-12, with losses only to Division 3 No. 4 Otsego and also larger Paw Paw. Beebe made the all-state first team last season, and Mohney made the second, while senior defender Elise Van Sparrentak made the third and junior keeper Jenna Blackwell and Bertrand earned honorable mentions. Junior Sarah Wenke joins the three mentioned above with double-digit goals, finding the net 10 times heading into this week.
ROYAL OAK SHRINE CATHOLIC
Record/rank: 22-3-3, No. 2
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League 2/3
Coach: Mark Soma, 15th season (record N/A)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Allison LaPoint, jr. GK (17 shutouts); Chloe Woodbeck, sr. F; Elli Plunkey, soph. F; Regan Robinson, jr. M. (No other stats submitted.)
Outlook: The Knights have dominated in winning their first Regional title and now moving on to their first championship game. Shrine has outscored its six tournament opponents by a combined score of 34-1, with wins over No. 14 Lansing Christian, No. 4 Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central and No. 5 Madison Heights Bishop Foley along the way. LaPoint and Robinson made the all-state second team last season, and Plunkey earned honorable mention. But the team got a massive boost when Woodbeck – who has signed with Purdue – joined the high school team this spring after playing at the elite club level.
PHOTO: Marian’s Jansen Eichenlaub, here in last season’s Division 2 Final against Forest Hills Northern, will try to lead her team this weekend to its third straight championship.
Streberger Steps Into Larger Leadership Role as GPN Seeks to Reign Again
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
April 26, 2024
GROSSE POINTE — Amelia Streberger is already getting a sneak preview about what her future in soccer could look like one day.
A senior standout for reigning Division 2 champion Grosse Pointe North, Streberger said she has thought about getting into coaching one day, which is good because it seems like she’s gotten a head start on that type of leadership over the past year since the Norsemen claimed what some would argue was an unexpected Finals title last June.
Last year’s head coach, Olivia Dallaire, stepped down during the offseason and a large crop of seniors graduated, leaving a good portion of the roster to be comprised by 13 incoming freshmen.
“I feel like I’ve had to step up as a leader on and off of the field,” Streberger said. “Especially since these freshmen coming in have never played (varsity) soccer before.”
But as far as finding a player to help guide younger ones and ease the program into a coaching transition, you’d be hard pressed to find a better person for the job than Streberger.
After helping North win its first Finals title, Streberger, a midfielder, was named to the all-state Dream Team. She has a future in college soccer, as Streberger signed in November to play next for Detroit Mercy.
Now, she’s back this spring to not only lead a young team that has a first-year coach in Thalu Masindi, but also try and show the state her team can be strong again after last year’s unanticipated run. North had finished fifth in the Macomb Area Conference Red during the regular season with only four wins entering the MHSAA Tournament.
Streberger admitted that even some in the Grosse Pointe community thought it was a “Cinderella” team that defied the odds, but said there was talent on the roster last year that is back for more this spring, including fellow captains Gabby Miller and Alyssa Burney.
“It was through hard work and dedication,” Streberger said of the championship. “It was not through luck or anything.”
When he was interviewing for the vacant head coaching job after Dallaire stepped down, Masindi said one part of the interview process was interacting with the team –and he quickly found Streberger is just as “soccer crazy” as he is as the two got to know one another.
As he has transitioned into the role, Masindi said Streberger has been a rock to rely on.
“She shows ownership with helping out with some of the practices,” he said. “To make sure the intensity is high and she’s demanding more of her players, and also showing the freshmen that this is what you need to do for your four years to show growth.”
While her leadership talents are obvious, Masindi said so is what she brings to the team technically.
“I know when she has the ball at her feet, she’s confident and calm,” he said. “She’s always going to be a threat. When she collects the ball, she knows she is going to be a difference.”
Streberger said she’s been playing soccer “since she could walk,” especially since she has three older siblings who played the game including older brother Jack, who played collegiately at Butler.
Amelia Streberger said there were constant battles among her siblings in the family’s basement, where they would try to score on mini-nets for hours.
“We had so many holes in the wall,” she said. “It was crazy.”
Given what she has accomplished for the North soccer community, all those holes obviously have been worth it.
Streberger still has plenty of games ahead as a player, with more than a month left of her senior season and a college career upcoming. Beyond that she envisions staying involved in the game, and this spring has provided her some valuable insight if coaching is her next soccer calling.
“I’ve definitely thought about it with my club teammates,” she said. “We’ve definitely talked about it, because it’s something we love so much. We’d love to give off what we love and teach younger kids.”
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Grosse Pointe North's Amelia Streberger (7) works for possession during last season's Division 2 Final. (Middle) Streberger accepts her championship medal.