Gull Lake Returns to State's Elite
June 15, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
WILLIAMSTON – Can one save change a soccer season?
It certainly can alter a championship game, as junior Maggie Harma and Richland Gull Lake found out Saturday afternoon in Williamston.
Bloomfield Hills Marian fired 27 shots during the double-overtime MHSAA Division 2 Final. Harma, the keeper, had to save 13.
But the shot she stopped 30 seconds into the 100-minute game might’ve saved the Blue Devils’ first championship run since 1992, one they finished with a 1-0 victory over the reigning champion Mustangs.
“If it had gone in, our team would’ve been down the whole game trying to come back,” Harma said. “Because I saved it, it kinda gave us the little push we needed: We are here, we deserve to be here, we’re not here by luck. We’re here because we’re good, and we can win this.”
Gull Lake (21-1-1) was a Finals regular during the 1990s. But the current players were either still figuring out how to run or maybe even how to walk when the Blue Devils played in their most recent championship game in 1999.
Marian’s story is nearly the opposite. The Mustangs (17-3-4) have won five titles over the last 11 seasons, including three of the last five in Division 2.
Gull Lake second-year coach Jeff Corstange was plenty familiar with his program’s previous success, having graduated from the school in 1996.
“That’s one of the things when I came into this coaching role two years ago; I knew what it took to get there,” Corstange said. “These girls were young. They didn’t really know what it was. But I wanted to bring excitement back to Gull Lake.
“The whole community supported us tonight, and they get energy off of that.”
Harma admitted her team was a bit intimidated when Marian first arrived Saturday. But Corstange had emphasized to his players that they deserved to be in the Final, and the numbers said the same.
Gull Lake entered the postseason ranked No. 3, just one spot behind Marian. The Blue Devils gave up only eight goals this season – and including Saturday, not one during the MHSAA tournament.
“It starts with their keeper. She’s a really good keeper. And the four in the back are really good,” Marian coach Barry Brodsky said. “Just for whatever reason, we couldn’t get that last little inch it takes to get it into the goal. I thought we were going to get it the first 30 seconds of the game. Sometimes when you don’t get that goal you think you should, that’s the game right there.”
Gull Lake didn’t get its goal until 3:56 into the first overtime. Sophomore forward Amanda Pavletic, who had 15 goals this season although she wasn’t a starter, found the back of the net and sent the Blue Devils’ supporters into a frenzy.
Like it had in a 1-0 overtime Semifinal win over Spring Lake in the Semifinal, Gull Lake’s defense held strong over the final 16 minutes to secure the win.
“We worked really hard in the preseason, and we knew what we were capable of doing this year,” Corstange said. “All that hard work and determination ... this goes to show we can battle with anybody, being a small school. We welcome the battle. We have a lot of talent out there.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Gull Lake freshman Kenzie Harney (11) battles with a Bloomfield Hills Marian player for possession during Saturday’s Division 2 Final. (Middle) Marian sophomore Kelly Sweeney (11) pushes the ball past the outstretched foot of Gull Lake’s Olivia Sullivan. (Click to see more from Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Wilk Inspires - Again - as 2nd Injury Comeback Helps Spark Historic Midland Run
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
May 28, 2025
The physical feeling of tearing her ACL was familiar to Theresa Wilk.
She tore the ligament in her right knee while playing soccer not long before starting her freshman year at Midland. So, when she suffered the same injury, to the same knee, in the same fashion, during the District Final her sophomore year, there was little doubt in her mind what had happened.
What was unfamiliar, however, was the feeling that came along with it.
“As soon as I felt the buckle, I knew,” Wilk said. “Honestly, I didn’t think I would ever come back to soccer. I really wanted to quit everything. I didn’t want to go out and see people. It was definitely a lot harder than the first time around. The first time, I was able to think, ‘I still have three more years after this.’”
Those injuries cost Wilk two full high school seasons, but not, as she had feared, her career. After a second long rehabilitation process, and nearly two full years away from the field, she’s back in the Chemics’ midfield and has helped lead her team to a 19-0 record heading into Friday night’s Division 1 District Final against Midland Dow.
It’s a comeback that required special types of resilience and determination – and anyone who has watched Wilk play is well aware she possesses both.
“It’s unbelievable, for the size of her, how much of a scrapper she is,” Midland coach Rico Barassi said. “She’s great at stealing balls. She will see the player, and they’ll try to shield the ball, and she’ll just take it, then the other player will push her and we’ll get a foul. It’s uncanny. She also sees the field very well and is very unselfish. She’s very often the assist behind the assist. But with Theresa, you just let her float on the field. She always finds the ball and finds the player. She will chase somebody down. She could be on the 18 (yard box) on the other side of the field, and she will chase a player down.”
Barassi has always seen the potential in Wilk, so much so that despite her suffering her first injury seven months prior to what would have been her freshman season, he saved her No. 20 jersey and a spot for her on the varsity team.
Saving a jersey and spot is something Barassi said he does for all players on his team when they suffer a serious injury, but it’s still a massive statement for a freshman who has yet to play a high school game, and one that meant a lot to Wilk.
“That was the biggest part – I had my number, he gave me a jersey, a bag and everything,” Wilk said. “He told me that in my sophomore year, when you’re ready, you have a spot on the team. That really pushed me through.”
Wilk was one of several freshmen to earn a spot on the varsity team their first year, as nine were brought up and made an immediate impact. That year, while Wilk served as a team manager, the Chemics finished 7-7-4 – and Barassi knew the future was bright.
“I thought they’re small, they’re little, but they’re very good,” Barassi said. “Wait until they get to be juniors and seniors, they’re going to make history.”
The following two seasons resulted in District titles for Midland, including with a shootout victory over Dow in 2023.
Wilk’s second ACL tear came during the second overtime of that game, on a cross she played with her left foot. The familiar buckle was enough to tell her what had happened, even if the initial MRI results were inconclusive.
Due to her familiarity with the injury, Wilk said she recovered more quickly the second time. She was even given clearance to return to action in March of her junior year. But knowing that she still had a ways to go to build up her strength and be the player she was capable of being, she decided to keep working on her recovery and sit out last season.
Once again, her spot and her number were safe, and she served as a team manager while the Chemics went 16-2-3, claimed a second-straight District title and advanced to the Regional Final where they lost 3-2 to eventual Finals champion Spring Lake.
Watching it all happen without being on the field was difficult for Wilk, but the support system around her helped get her through.
“I think the biggest thing was they didn’t treat me any differently than if I wasn’t injured,” she said. “My family still had me do my chores, they let me be independent and only came (to help) if I asked. Same as my team, they didn’t constantly bring it up and talk about it, or be like, ‘Oh man, that’s really sad.’ I think they knew I didn’t want that. Everyone was so amazing and nice, and I didn’t ever feel like I wasn’t part of the team.”
On March 19 of this year, Wilk returned to the field for the Chemics in a 2-1 win against Grand Ledge. She admits there’s a bit of a difference in how she plays, and that she isn’t always as aggressive as she used to be. But her game has evolved, and while she continues to be a defensive force in the midfield, her ability as a passer has shined through, leading her to first-team all-Saginaw Valley League honors.
It also helped her to feel like her return to action was complete.
“The biggest moment for me that was like, ‘I’m back,’ was during the Dow game (April 28) when I had an assist to Alahna Beckett,” Wilk said. “She scored our second goal, and that got us up a little bit and we got the momentum. That was a really big moment where I was proud of myself. That’s when I felt I was fully back.”
This past week, Wilk graduated summa cum laude from Midland, and she will attend Grand Valley State University in the fall, where she plans to study nursing.
“I think that I kind of knew before my experience that I wanted to do healthcare,” she said. “But my experience set in stone what I wanted to do.”
Before she leaves for Allendale, there’s more work to be done on the soccer field, starting with Friday night’s match against Dow which will be a bit of a full-circle moment for Wilk.
As it approaches, though, she’s more focused on what she and her teammates have been able to accomplish together, and what could still be ahead.
“I’m really proud of the team,” she said. “I’ve known all these girls basically my whole life, and seeing us all grow up together and all accomplishing this amazing task together is wonderful to see. I think we can (make a postseason run), we just have to play our style and continue doing what we do, and work together. We have an amazing connection on the team, and I feel like it really shows on the field.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Midland's Theresa Wilk (20) and her teammates celebrate during a game this season. (Middle) Wilk takes a quick photo from her hospital bed after her second ACL tear. (Below) Wilk, left, shares a positive moment during physical therapy. (Soccer photo provided by the Midland athletic department; hospital and therapy photos courtesy of the Wilk family.)