Preview: Number 1s Aim to Finish on Top
June 15, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The top-ranked teams in all four divisions have made good on those expectations as we turn to the final two days of the 2017 girls soccer season.
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central in Division 1, Bloomfield Hills Marian in Division 2, Flint Powers Catholic in Division 3 and Lansing Christian in Division 4 started the playoffs as favorites two weeks ago and remain so – although all four surely are anticipating one of if not their toughest matchup of this season.
Following is this weekend’s schedule at Williamston High School:
Division 1 - Saturday - 4 p.m.
Grand Blanc vs. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central
Division 2 - Friday - 4 p.m.
Bloomfield Hills Marian vs. Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern
Division 3 - Friday - 1 p.m.
Flint Powers Catholic vs. Freeland
Division 4 - Saturday - 1 p.m.
Kalamazoo Christian vs. Lansing Christian
Tickets cost $8. 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.
All statistics below are through Regionals. (Click for links to brackets and scores.)
Division 1
GRAND BLANC
Record/rank: 22-2-4, No. 4
Coach: Greg Kehler, 19th season (299-86-57)
League finish: Second in Kensington Lakes Activities Association West.
Championship history: Two runner-up finishes (most recent 2015).
Players to watch: Paige Webber, soph. F (23 goals, 14 assists); Faith Webber, fr. F (23 goals, nine assists); Alexandra Childers, sr. D; Chelsea Clark, sr. D.
Outlook: Grand Blanc shut out its first four postseason opponents and 15 total this spring, as defense clearly is a strength with Childers and Clark earning all-state honorable mentions last season. Sophomore Madison McKay has 12 shutouts season while giving up on average less than a goal a game. Junior Morgen Metzger is the main distributor of the offense with 21 assists entering this week, and freshman Jenna Blackburn has added 12 goals.
GRAND RAPIDS FOREST HILLS CENTRAL
Record/rank: 20-0-4, No. 1
Coach: Jeremy Stacy, 10th season (171-20-10)
League finish: First in Ottawa-Kent Conference White.
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recent 2008 in Division 2), one runner-up finish.
Players to watch: Emma Yoder, jr. GK (0.32 goals-against average, 13 shutouts); Bailey Korhorn, jr. F (29 goals, 15 assists); Stephanie Currie, soph. F (15 goals, 18 assists); Madeline Becker, jr. M (19 goals, 11 assists); Natalie Lunt, jr. D.
Outlook: Forest Hills Central has been ranked No. 1 the entire season as it’s pursued its first Division 1 championship and after suffering its only loss in a Semifinal last spring. Korhorn made the all-state first team last season, while Becker made the second, Yoder the third and Currie and Lunt earned honorable mentions. Junior Madison Donley (16 goals, 18 assists) and sophomore Ashley Ward (14 goals) also are dangerous offensive options up top.
Division 2
BLOOMFIELD HILLS MARIAN
Record/rank: 23-0, No. 1
Coach: Barry Brodsky, 16th season (297-26-35)
League finish: First in Detroit Catholic League Central.
Championship history: Five MHSAA titles (most recent 2012), three runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Jansen Eichenlaub, soph. F (27 goals, 7 assists); Claudia Schilling, jr. M (10 goals, 15 assists); Ellie Deconinck, sr. F (18 goals, 21 assists); Elaina Eckert, sr. F (7 goals, 10 assists).
Outlook: Marian long has been a state power, most recently finishing Division 2 runner-up in both 2013 and 2014 and falling in a Semifinal a year ago. The Mustangs have tied for the third-most shutouts in one season with 22 and with another Saturday would tie the MHSAA record by giving up only one goal this season. Senior Isabel Hayes has seen most of the time in net.
GRAND RAPIDS FOREST HILLS NORTHERN
Record/rank: 20-0-3, No. 2
Coach: Daniel Siminski, fourth season (67-9-10)
League finish: First in O-K White.
Championship history: Two runner-up finishes (most recent 2016).
Players to watch: Natalie Belsito, sr. M/F (15 goals, 9 assists); Sophie Terzes, jr. M (4 goals, 8 assists); Emily Ashby, jr. D/M (5 goals, 12 assists), Lauren Kozal, jr. GK/F (16 goals, 7 assists).
Outlook: Forest Hills Northern also is loaded with standouts, with Ashby making the all-state first team last season, Belsito making the second and Terzes making the third. Senior keeper Amanda Young also made the first team and should be in the mix Saturday after missing the Semifinal; Kozal stepped into net and will join Michigan State’s team in two years reportedly as a keeper. Freshman midfielder/forward Addie Brown joined her with a team-leading 16 goals heading into this week.
Division 3
FLINT POWERS CATHOLIC
Record/rank: 25-1-2, No. 1
Coach: Art Moody, 10th season (184-40-17)
League finish: First in Saginaw Valley League.
Championship history: Division 3 champion 2011, six runner-up finishes.
Players to watch: Sophie Bubnar, jr. F (15 goals, 20 assists); Rachel Rasins, soph. F (31 goals, 14 assists), Rachel Phillpotts, sr. D (13 goals, 7 assists), Sophia Dubiel, sr. F (10 goals, 8 assists).
Outlook: The Chargers, last season’s runners-up, will play for the title again after downing six of the top 17 ranked teams during the postseason – No. 9 Birch Run, No. 10 Frankenmuth, No. 6 Williamston, No. 16 Lansing Catholic, No. 17 Montrose and No. 8 Macomb Lutheran North. Rasins and Phillpotts made the all-state first team last season, while Bubnar made the second and senior defender Sydney Wilhoite made the third. Dubiel and senior defender Abbey Clothier earned honorable mentions.
FREELAND
Record/rank: 22-1, No. 3
Coach: Lauren Kemerer, fourth season (82-8-4)
League finish: First in Tri-Valley Conference Central.
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Players to watch: Jessica Piper, sr. M (13 goals, 18 assists); Mackenzie Stroebel, jr. F (40 goals, 12 assists); Michelle Herring, sr. M (26 goals, 14 assists); Autumn Kloha, soph. F (32 goals, 7 assists).
Outlook: The Falcons advanced to their first championship game by ending No. 2 Hudsonville Unity Christian’s pursuit of a fourth straight Division 2 title. That win had to be the highlight of many this spring, and came in Freeland’s fourth straight Semifinal appearance. Herring made the all-state first team last season, while Piper and Stroebel made the third and Kloha earned honorable mention. Junior midfielder Kayler Radaz had 12 goals and sophomore midfielder Emerson Lynch 14 assists entering this week, and junior keeper Alexa Walker has 14 shutouts.
Division 4
KALAMAZOO CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 20-2-3, No. 8
Coach: Jay Allen, fourth season (73-13-7)
League finish: First in Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley.
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recent 2008).
Players to watch: Haley Balkema, sr. F (19 goals, 10 assists); Phoebe Will, soph. F/M (11 goals); Allyson Kranstz, sr. GK (0.30 goals-against average, 19 shutouts); Kayla Beebe, soph. F (28 goals).
Outlook: Christian has won four league and District titles and made the Semifinals this week for the second time under former assistant Allen, who was part of the program for all four championship runs last decade. Kranstz and senior midfielder/forward Abbey VanDongen both made the all-state second team last season. The Comets opened the postseason by upsetting No. 2 Kalamazoo Hackett, and downed No. 16 Muskegon Catholic Central in the Semifinal.
LANSING CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 22-2-2, No. 1
Coach: Joel Vande Kopple, 11th season (172-46-13)
League finish: First in Greater Lansing Activities Conference.
Championship history: Two runner-up finishes (most recent 2015).
Players to watch: Juliana Figueriredo, sr. M (10 goals, 17 assists); Kasey Jamieson, jr. F (42 goals, 16 assists); Rilyn Ross, soph. F (19 goals, 13 assists); Kealeigh Usiak, soph. D.
Outlook: Lansing Christian finished runner-up both in 2015 and 2011 and has played in four straight Semifinals. A star-studded lineup has made the Pilgrims favorites to claim their first title – Figueriredo, Jamieson and Usiak made the all-state first team last season, while sophomore midfielders Alex Hanks and Eliza Lewis and senior defender Lydia Sprague earned honorable mentions. Lansing Christian has continued to shine even without senior defender Abby Krueger, also an all-state first-teamer last season who has missed these recent playoffs with an injury.
PHOTO: Forest Hills Northern's Natalie Belsito works to gain possession against Pontiac Notre Dame during last season's Division 2 Final. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Surging Boyne City Shining in Spotlight
April 25, 2019
By Chris Dobrowolski
Special for Second Half
Boyne City is a force to be reckoned with on the girls soccer pitch.
Katie Harmeling still remembers when that wasn’t the case.
“Our first two years we were struggling a lot,” said the Ramblers’ senior defender. “We got mercied a lot of the time. Just had a lot of trouble as a team.”
The Ramblers won just six games during an inauspicious first two years of Harmeling’s career, but my how things have changed.
Boyne City went undefeated through the regular season last year while winning its first Lake Michigan Conference title and started off this year with an unbeaten streak of seven games. The only game the Ramblers have failed to come out of victorious was a 1-1 draw with league rival Harbor Springs. Otherwise, they have been dominant, winning games by an average of six goals and posting five shutouts along the way.
“We’re continuing to improve each game we play,” said senior keeper Cora Hauger. “Now that we’re getting into the thicker part of our season, we’re starting to figure out what needs to be done and we’re starting to connect more as a team and work together in that sense. We keep improving each game.”
Boyne City received a big boost, and began to see its fortunes turn around, when a large and talented class of freshmen joined the program last season after years of honing their skills at the youth level and on the club circuit. Seven started in their first year, and right from the beginning they showed they were ready to lift the Ramblers to new heights in spite of their youth.
“I knew (we) were going to be getting a good influx of players coming in,” said head coach Ed Fantozzi, who is in his fourth year leading the varsity. “The youth program is excellent. It feeds a lot of kids. It’s building, even on the boys side. It’s a great feeder program.”
Because Boyne City had never experienced success in girls soccer, the common belief was that the Ramblers were catching teams by surprise last year. That’s not the case now, however, as Boyne’s reputation has changed quickly. The Ramblers suddenly have a bulls-eye on their backs.
“Last year we came out of the gate and nobody knew who we were,” said Hauger. “This year we’re battling back from everybody knowing who we are. We kind of have to overcome that in the sense that nothing we do is surprising. Everybody knows about the big throw-ins. Everybody knows who our shooters are. Everybody knows we have a strong midfield. We just have to play our game.”
The light is now shining brightly on the Ramblers, and they are proving capable of handling the added attention they’ve brought upon themselves.
“People are focusing on us more than they might have in the past,” said Fantozzi. “It brings a different dynamic to the season. Winning is awesome, but it’s also one of those things where you have to learn how to deal with it. We have a young team and they’re handling it well. They’re a very mature group.”
Boyne City has a well-rounded squad overall. The Ramblers possess dynamic goal-scoring ability and are backed by a stout defense.
“We don’t look at it like one person is the reason why we are winning. It’s a team effort,” said Fantozzi. “The twins (Jordan and Taylor Noble) are phenomenal forwards, but without the rest of them they’re not going to be phenomenal by themselves. It is all of us who are doing this — from me, to the two assistant coaches that are helping out, to all the girls — we are a team. We work together. We win as a team, we lose as a team and we tie as a team.”
Knowing it could now win games and championships, Boyne City wanted to take the next step and bolstered its schedule this season. The Ramblers already have played, and beaten, much larger schools such as Traverse City Central and Alpena. They also have a match next month against Freeland, the Division 3 runner-up last year.
“That was one of our first steps this season was to get some highly-competitive games that pushed the envelope, that shook things up a little bit,” said Fantozzi. “We can pick up nonconference games and say, ‘Oh, we want to pad our record,’ but we’re really trying to pick up as many games that push us past our limits, put us out of our box of comfort.”
It’s all in an effort to perhaps add more championships to the board on the gymnasium wall; the program finally was able to attain a board detailing the school’s girls soccer titles when it won a league crown. The Ramblers are looking to repeat in the Lake Michigan Conference as well as win postseason hardware. Last year Boyne City saw its season end in heartbreaking fashion with a 2-1 overtime setback to Harbor Springs in the District Final. That loss came after it had beaten the Rams twice during the regular season.
“To be cut short on our season was very hard,” said Harmeling. “We were all very upset. It was really hard all around. That loss has given us something to work toward this year.”
The Ramblers don’t just want to stop at a District title, either. They feel they have what it takes to make noise even longer than that.
It’s quite a contrast from just a few years ago, but it’s also made some of the older members of the team appreciate the prosperity they are now enjoying.
“It’s a phenomenal feeling to go from being on that team where we didn’t play very well and we didn’t have very much talent on our team — we worked hard but we didn’t have much talent — to progressing to being a senior and a leader on this team where we have the potential to go very far,” said Hauger. “It’s just a really cool feeling to see the evolution of the Boyne City soccer program.”
Chris Dobrowolski has covered northern Lower Peninsula sports since 1999 at the Ogemaw County Herald, Alpena News, Traverse City Record-Eagle and currently as sports editor at the Antrim Kalkaska Review since 2016. 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) Boyne City's Jaelyn Jarema (4) works to maintain possession against Grayling this spring. (Middle) Inanna Hauger (7) finds an opening to move the ball ahead against Kalkaska. (Photos by Sports in Motion.)