Unity Finishes D3 Run With 11th Title, Without Giving up Postseason Goal
By
Perry A. Farrell
Special for MHSAA.com
June 16, 2023
EAST LANSING – Dynasty.
Hudsonville Unity Christian has been to the Division 3 Girls Soccer Finals 15 times and reached at least the Semifinals 19 seasons.
Friday’s 3-0 championship win over Grosse Ile – which was making its first Finals appearance – was the 11th for legendary coach Randy Heethuis, who also finished his 34thseason with 620 victories. Counting his tenure as the school’s boys coach, Heethuis has racked up 1,122 victories.
During this playoff run the Crusaders outscored their six opponents by a combined 35-0. For the season, the Unity Christian defense allowed just eight goals – against great competition – and never more than one in a game.
The championship was the program’s first since 2016.
“We lost in a shootout last year in the Finals (against Williamston), and the year before we lost in the Semifinals, so it has been a while,’’ said Heethuis, recalling the 3-2 back-and-forth loss to the Hornets a year ago.
“We had Brianna (Rose), a starting center back, and she’s kind of the anchor of the defense. Morgan’s (Scholten) is a three-year starter in goal. The two outside backs, Ella Bosscher and Kirstin Dekock … they were fantastic. They just came on so strong as the year went on. They continued to beat people to the ball and kept the ball out of our end.
“That was a very defensive-mind Grosse Ile team, but we didn’t give them any looks.’’
Dominant.
Officially Unity Christian’s winning goal was scored by junior forward Stella DeSmit, who also chipped in an assist.
“It’s just great. Not everyone gets to do this,’’ said DeSmit. “It’s kind of a once-in-a-lifetime. It’s the 11th for the program, but it’s the first for us. It has been a long drought. We all work hard, but I don’t think our defense gets enough credit for how much they do for us. They carry us back there. Working through our defense and making passes up to our forwards. It’s just not the forwards – it’s our whole team.
With a lineup sprinkled with Division I and II college talent, the Crusaders improved to 21-1-2 with the win. Grosse Ile finished 17-3-4.
Unity Christian dominated play in the early going, but Cailey O’Farrell was great in goal for Grosse Ile, keeping the Crusaders off the scoreboard nearly the entire first half. Her 11 saves for the game included stops with her face and stomach and made the MHSAA record book list for the most in a championship game.
Unity Christian finally broke through with two minutes, 54 seconds left in the first half on DeSmit’s goal off an assist from Emily Timmer.
The Crusaders made it 2-0 when Rose, a senior, headed in a corner kick at the 30:13 mark.
Senior forward Jenna Schreiber scored at the 24:42 mark off an assist from DeSmit to give Unity a commanding 3-0 lead.
“We just keep talking together and working together,’’ said Scholten. “It comes down to communication. We beat the other team to the ball. The first goal takes the pressure off, but we keep working towards the next goal. The depth of our team allows us to keep coming and wear the other team down.’’
PHOTOS (Top) Hudsonville Unity Christian’s Emily Timmer (20) controls possession Friday, with Grosse Ile’s Ella Gatti defending. (Middle) Jessie Postma (9) sets up for a free kick. (Photos by Adam Sheehan/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Slanger Stars in Net as Rockford Caps 1st Finals Run with 1st Championship
By
Brian Freiberger
Special for MHSAA.com
June 12, 2026
EAST LANSING – Rockford – playing in its first MHSAA Final in girls soccer Friday – finally broke through a vaunted Troy defense during the second half to earn its first championship with a 2-0 win over the Colts at DeMartin Stadium.
“Our word this year is relentless. We're so proud of them. Troy was well coached and organized. They played a formation that we didn't see very much,” Rockford coach Stu Quackenbush said. “Troy won the first half and the girls were frustrated, but at halftime, the seniors stepped up. They said the right things. We were having a hard time winning first and second balls, and the seniors did a great job of helping players understand that. Then they bought into different roles. … They were confident in each other, confident in their abilities to make adjustments.”
Both senior-led teams left it all out on the field with everything on the line. Rockford had 16 seniors, while Troy competed with nine.
Both teams had plenty of chances to find the back of the net in the first half, but quality defensive lines and solid goalkeeper play kept the score 0-0 going into the break.
Rockford (21-2) and Troy (16-4-2) wouldn’t separate until midway through the second half when senior forward Isla Brown found the back of the net thanks to a centering pass from Sawyer Lenon to take a 1-0 lead with 17 minutes remaining.
“This means so much to me. We’ve been working hard for the past four years to bring a state championship home,” Brown said.
Troy would not back down, nearly scoring multiple times, but the Rams defense and goalkeeper Kaia Slanger wouldn’t let it happen.
“I was just thinking that we got the ball, but we need to stay locked in. Anything can happen,” Slanger said. “It feels really awesome to win a state championship. This shows that all of our hard work led up to this, and we deserved it. I love every single one of those girls. We’ve been playing together for so long, and we are a family. It's gonna be hard to leave this.”
Quackenbush credited Slanger with having the best game of her career.
“(Slanger) played the best game of her life. It's a great time to choose to do that at the state championship. I couldn't be more proud of the kid. We had some question marks going into the year at goalkeeper. … (Slanger) is the player we needed today, and she was confident, she was brave, and the girls are so proud of her,” Quackenbush said.
After a Colts scoring chance, Rockford got on the run with time running out and sent a ball deep in the Colts' zone where senior captain Sydney DeKuiper found Amelia Chapin for the second goal with fewer than two minutes remaining.
The Colts (16-4-2) held the Rams' potent offense in check for most of the night, besides a few lapses during the evenly-matched game.
“Sometimes that's the cruel reality of the game. The ball doesn't always bounce your way. Rockford had a good game plan. They knew what they were getting themselves into. We knew what we were getting ourselves into, and we knew it was just going to be a heavyweight battle,” Troy coach Tony Casali said. “It's not the trophy we wanted, but there are 110 D1 teams, and there are two teams left standing today. It's definitely an honor to be out here. It's an honor to coach those girls.”
Casali, along with his senior-heavy roster, catapulted the Colts to their first championship game since 2013.
“This is my first year coaching (at Troy), so I didn't have a chance to get to know these seniors as freshmen coming in,” Casali said. “But what I did get the chance to get to know is the commitment they have, the resiliency they have. These girls have laid a big foundation.”
PHOTOS (Top) Rockford goalkeeper Kaia Slanger, far left, makes a stop as Troy and Rockford players pursue the ball Friday at DeMartin Stadium. (Middle) Troy’s Kaylee Worrell (6) controls the ball while Rockford’s Rylan Potter attempts to take possession. (Below) The Rams celebrate their championship win. (Photos by Adam Sheehan/Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)