Headed Toward A History-Making Finish
June 12, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Nine Grandville Calvin Christian seniors faced their final high school season this spring, and with it exciting possibilities.
Their team had won four straight league titles and looked good for a fifth. The Squires also had moved into a different MHSAA division, with new playoff opponents and new championship opportunities.
It would've been easy to look far ahead. But those seniors knew better than to look past the first steps that have brought them to the season's final week for the second time in school history.
Calvin Christian knocked out two ranked teams in last week’s Regional – first No. 8 St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic 7-0 and then No. 2 Kalamazoo Christian 7-2. At No. 4, the Squires are the highest-ranked team left in Division 4 with only two more wins needed for a first MHSAA championship.
“We’ve known from the beginning that something special could be in order. Not in terms of advancing far in the tournament, but in having a capable team and taking every opportunity to play together,” Calvin Christian coach Tim TerHaar said. “What these seniors have done, they haven’t been consumed with a tournament run all season. They’re focused on going out and enjoying playing with each other.”
The Squires (23-2-1) can earn one more game together by defeating Muskegon Western Michigan Christian in Wednesday’s Semifinal at East Kentwood High School. Calvin Christian has never advanced to an MHSAA Final; this is the second time the Squires have made it this far, matching their Division 4 run in 2000. (Click for all Semifinal pairings.)
Don’t assume this run has been a product of merely moving into Division 4 (the team also played in Division 4 during TerHaar’s first two years, 2001 and 2002). Calvin Christian has won its league in 11 of TerHaar’s 12 seasons – although the Squires then frequently ran into six-time Division 3 champion Hudsonville Unity Christian or Grand Rapids South Christian during the tournament.
But the Division 4 road is tough as well, with obstacles like four-time MHSAA champion Kalamazoo Christian, which Calvin Christian lost to 2-1 after a 6-0 start this spring. The Squires were missing one of their best scorers for that game, but also had trouble capitalizing on offensive opportunities that did present themselves.
“Having played them and lost to them was a huge motivating factor for all of us,” TerHaar said. “In some ways, it could’ve been a blessing.”
Seniors Katie Klunder, Jenny Holsem, Riley Gortsema and Morgan Noordyke have played on the varsity all four seasons and bring a 73-14-5 career record into this week.
Klunder – who has signed with reigning Division II national runner-up Grand Valley State – has scored 51 goals this spring, tied for sixth in the MHSAA record book for one season. Her 75 points is third. The team has outscored its postseason opponents 36-2 and put a ball in net during the first five minutes of all five playoff games.
The team’s defense has been similarly record-setting. Calvin Christian has 21 shutouts – including 20 by senior goalkeeper Lydia VerStrate, with that total tied for third in the MHSAA record book for one season. In front of her are seniors Gortsema and Noordyke and freshman Morgan Buursma, and a strong midfield led in part by Holsem.
The Kalamazoo Christian loss taught them and their teammates a lesson about the importance of mental sharpness. And that was evident in the rematch Thursday, when the Squires immediately brought the attack.
“I think it speaks to the fact that we have nine seniors, and this is their chance – their last chance, really,” TerHaar said. “I’m pleased that haven’t taken anything for granted. They’ve made the most of every opportunity.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Calvin Christian senior Jenny Holsem (6) deflects the ball during Thursday’s Regional Final against Kalamazoo Christian. (Middle) Squires coach Tim TerHaar presents the trophy to his team after the 7-2 win over the Comets. (Photos courtesy of Calvin Christian soccer.)
Northville's Weber Stands Tall in a Crowd
April 25, 2012
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Mallory Weber has seen plenty of creative defenses during her four seasons on Northville’s varsity soccer team.
Most of the time, she’s shadowed by two defenders. Sometimes, she’ll draw three. But the most memorable effort came from just one defender last season against rival Novi.
“She followed me everywhere. I went out of bounds, she followed me out of bounds,” Weber remembered Wednesday. “It was pretty quick. I’d stop. She’d stop. She was like on a leash with me.”
Welcome to life as a two-time all-state forward who next season will play for the reigning Big Ten regular-season champion, and this week receives a Second Half High 5 for helping key her team's outstanding start.
Northville is 5-0-2 coming off Tuesday’s 8-0 win over South Lyon, in which Weber scored two goals and had an assist to push her season totals to nine and five, respectively.
She didn’t score in last week’s win over Novi – the Mustangs' first over the Wildcats since 2009 – but that hardly means she didn’t factor in what might be considered the team’s best victory of the last two seasons. Novi had won 40 straight games, including last season’s MHSAA Division 1 Final.
“Novi had her double-teamed at all times and sometimes triple-teamed. This obviously opens up the field for others to execute,” Northville coach Eric Brucker said. “Mallory is the workhorse and on-field leader. Other coaches within our league have pulled Mallory aside after postgame handshakes to voice their admiration for her on-the-field direction.
“She is a great example of trying to do the most for her team – every game, all 80 minutes. The players around her feed off her energy.”
Extra attention from opponents became noticeable to her last season, but didn’t slow Weber as she earned a second-straight all-state first-team selection. She’s picked up some moves to create her own space – usually, she’ll play the ball back, spin off and try to come back to the ball in an effort to gain a few steps.
But she also realizes how much opponents are changing their defenses to account for her – and how much that can benefit a Mustangs team that returned nearly intact from a year ago.
With little opportunity to look up when she got the ball against Novi, Weber was able to one-touch pass to teammates because they’ve grown accustomed to where each other will be positioned.
Among those getting plenty of great looks up front is sophomore Jamie Cheslik, who has six goals and seven assists and scored the game-winner against Novi. Brucker called her the “catalyst,” another who creates plenty of havoc and scoring opportunities.
Weber was not considered that player yet when she got serious about soccer at age 10. She’d played in recreational leagues, but didn’t make the top team in her club that first season – which paid off in the long run because of how hard she worked to become better. But the middle of the next season, she was promoted. And she joined the Mustangs' top team in her first season of high school.
Although Northville has two MHSAA championship game appearances since 2004, all three of Weber’s seasons have ended with losses in arguably the toughest District in the state (which this season includes three teams currently ranked among the top seven in Division 1).
But the Novi win could be the spark for a run Weber has been waiting to lead.
“It’s what I’ve been waiting for each year. We’re on the same page, and it would be great to go out like that on a good note, and good for the program,” Weber said. “We’ve finally come together, and that (win) gave us the confidence we’ll need in the playoffs.”
Click for more about Weber and this week's other High 5s.
PHOTO: Northville's Mallory Weber (14) works the ball upfield while being shadowed by a defender. (Photo courtesy of Shelly Bush Photography.)