2018 Girls Varsity Soccer Team
Game Summaries & Team News
Game Summaries
All Game Summaries
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. OPEN DATE
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: -
Warriors Lose to Top-Ranked NM
By Steve Gunn
LocalSportsJournal.com
MUSKEGON – In normal seasons, a North Muskegon-Western Michigan Christian district final would be a pretty interesting matchup.
But the 2018 North Muskegon girls soccer squad is no normal team.
The Norse, ranked No. 1 in the state, improved their record to a perfect 19-0 with a 5-0 victory over WMC on Saturday in the Division 4 district championship game at Muskegon Catholic Central.
The entire district tournament was not a cakewalk for the Norse. They squeaked past a good Muskegon Catholic team 1-0 in Thursday’s semifinals, before cruising to the title on Saturday.
But now the sky seems like the limit for North Muskegon, which will open regional play on Tuesday. The Norse are three victories away from making the state championship game and four away from winning it all.
Their coach, Ryan Berends, has no problem with saying that he believes his girls can do it.
“The way they’ve worked all through the season, I believe this team can make it all the way,” Berends said. “They have a lot of confidence, and they’re unselfish. That’s number one. We have a couple of girls with a lot of goals, but that’s because they get set up for them. Everybody on this team contributes.”
North Muskegon put heavy pressure on WMC from the early minutes of the game, keeping the ball in the Warrior zone and getting five shots on goal over the first 23 minutes, but nothing went in.
That changed with 17 minutes left in the first half, when Hope Johnson scored to put North Muskegon up 1-0.
Sophomore sensation Sophie Mueller made it 2-0 with 1:17 left in the first half.
North Muskegon iced the victory and the championship trophy with three more goals in the second half, from Abby Grevel, another from Johnson, and Grace Berends.
The Norse had a huge 18-1 advantage in shots on goal.
The loss brought an end to a positive season for a young WMC squad. The Warriors started out 2-8, but pulled it together and finished with a winning 12-11 record.
WMC will return all but two players next season, so the future seems bright.
“Hats off to them, there are a great team,” WMC Coach David Hulings said about the Norse. “We were outmanned and outplayed. Hats off to Ryan (Berends) and what he’s been able to do with his team. I hope they go all the way. I’m proud of my girls. I thought they fought valiantly.”
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Fruitport Calvary Chirst.
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 3 - 0
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Fruitport High School
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 1 - 0
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Orchard View High School
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 5 - 0
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Kalamazoo Christian Schools
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: 0 - 3
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Muskegon Catholic Central
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 2 - 1
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Ludington High School
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 2 - 0
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Manistee High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 1 - 0
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Whitehall High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 3 - 2
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Musk. Oakridge H.S.
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 3 - 2
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Muskegon Catholic Central
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: -
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Ludington High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 1 - 0
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Manistee High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 4 - 1
*Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Multiple Opponents*
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: -
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Reeths-Puffer High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: 1 - 4
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Holland Christian High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: 1 - 4
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. OPEN DATE
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: -
Warriors Lose to Top-Ranked NM
By Steve Gunn
LocalSportsJournal.com
MUSKEGON – In normal seasons, a North Muskegon-Western Michigan Christian district final would be a pretty interesting matchup.
But the 2018 North Muskegon girls soccer squad is no normal team.
The Norse, ranked No. 1 in the state, improved their record to a perfect 19-0 with a 5-0 victory over WMC on Saturday in the Division 4 district championship game at Muskegon Catholic Central.
The entire district tournament was not a cakewalk for the Norse. They squeaked past a good Muskegon Catholic team 1-0 in Thursday’s semifinals, before cruising to the title on Saturday.
But now the sky seems like the limit for North Muskegon, which will open regional play on Tuesday. The Norse are three victories away from making the state championship game and four away from winning it all.
Their coach, Ryan Berends, has no problem with saying that he believes his girls can do it.
“The way they’ve worked all through the season, I believe this team can make it all the way,” Berends said. “They have a lot of confidence, and they’re unselfish. That’s number one. We have a couple of girls with a lot of goals, but that’s because they get set up for them. Everybody on this team contributes.”
North Muskegon put heavy pressure on WMC from the early minutes of the game, keeping the ball in the Warrior zone and getting five shots on goal over the first 23 minutes, but nothing went in.
That changed with 17 minutes left in the first half, when Hope Johnson scored to put North Muskegon up 1-0.
Sophomore sensation Sophie Mueller made it 2-0 with 1:17 left in the first half.
North Muskegon iced the victory and the championship trophy with three more goals in the second half, from Abby Grevel, another from Johnson, and Grace Berends.
The Norse had a huge 18-1 advantage in shots on goal.
The loss brought an end to a positive season for a young WMC squad. The Warriors started out 2-8, but pulled it together and finished with a winning 12-11 record.
WMC will return all but two players next season, so the future seems bright.
“Hats off to them, there are a great team,” WMC Coach David Hulings said about the Norse. “We were outmanned and outplayed. Hats off to Ryan (Berends) and what he’s been able to do with his team. I hope they go all the way. I’m proud of my girls. I thought they fought valiantly.”
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Fruitport Calvary Chirst.
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 3 - 0
WMC Blanks Fruitport Calvary
The Western Michigan Christian girls soccer team rolled to a 3-0 shutout win over Fruitport Calvary Christian on Tuesday in the opening round of the district playoffs at Muskegon Catholic Central High School.
Emily Myers got things rolling for the Warriors, scoring the opening goal on an assist from Emily Rosema.
Adayla Liggett would score an unassisted goal to put the Warriors up by two scores and Morgan Kinnucan added the final tally on a penalty kick for the 3-0 win.
Ashlyn Lane and Katie Johnson shared keeper duties for the shoutout.
"For a team that started out 2-8, we have seen great improvement going 9-2 in the last 11 games," said WMC head coach David Hulings. "The players have done a great job of not getting discouraged and continuing to work. That work has paid off and improved their record."
The Warriors will play Ravenna in the district semifinals at 3:45 p.m. Thursdayat Muskegon Catholic Central High School.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Fruitport High School
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 1 - 0
Warriors beat Fruitport in last regular season game
The Warriors traveled to Fruitport and came home with a 1-0 victory in the last regular season game of the year. WMC's lone goal came with 18 minutes left in the second half. Morgan Kinnucan sent a ball to Emily Rosema who's soft touch found the side netting.
Coach Hulings: "This was a great tune up for the district games next week. Fruitport played tough against us.
This team has come a long way since the first games. I was proud of them. Our back line (Kinnucan, Anna Sytsema, Claudia Kingma and Madison Pearce) did another great job keeping a team out of our net. Ashlyn Lane got the shut-out and made several great saves in the last five minutes to secure the win."
The Warriors end the regular season 10-10 and now enter postseason play. Districts are held at Muskegon Catholic and their first round opponent will be Fruitport Calvary Christian at 5:30 on May 29th.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Orchard View High School
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 5 - 0
WMC Wins Share of Lakes 8 Championship
The Warriors traveled to Orchard View on Tuesday with a share of the conference championship on the line and came home 5-0 winners. Tuesday's win propels WMC to at least a share of the Lakes 8 Championship (Muskegon Catholic plays Orchard View Wednesday, 5/23) and an overall conference record of 7-1.
There was no time wasted getting on the scoreboard as the Warriors first goal came within a minute of the start of the game when Morgan Kinnucan crossed the ball and Abby Oppenhuizen was on the back post to touch it home. The second and third goals came from Emily Rosema and Grace VanBeek. Both goals were unassisted.
Goals 4 and 5 came in the last 10 minutes of the game from Freshmen Aubrey Braak and Lily Zenz who scored their first goals ever. They were assisted by Anna Systema and Abby Oppenhuizen.
Coach Hulings had the following to say regarding the victory, "This was another game to work out the bugs in a newer formation for the girls. We had some great defense by Claudia Kingma, Anna Sytsema, Morgan Kinnucan and Madison Pearce. Ashlyn Lane and Katie Johnson both shared the shut-out."
WMC plays at Fruitport at 5pm (5/23) to end the regular season.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Kalamazoo Christian Schools
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: 0 - 3
WMC plays Kalamazoo Christian at Hope
WMC played Kalamazoo Christian at Hope College on Saturday afternoon with the Comets coming out with a 3-0 win. The score was 1-0 at halftime, but the Comets tallied two goals in the second half.
Despite the outcome, Coach Hulings left encouraged, "We played the #3 team in the state tonight. It is always a good measurement for what we have to do to be the best in the state. There is some privilege to learn where you are when playing the teams that are playing at their best across the state.
Our girls are growing right before our eyes. The score may not have reflected it but we had some great growth. Our defenders did a great job against a top team to keep us in the game for most of the time. We ran out of gas toward the end of the game, but we are seeing the development of our younger players."
The Warriors are 8-10 overall and with a win Tuesday at Orchard View could tie for a conference championship.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Muskegon Catholic Central
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 2 - 1
Warriors Move into First-Place Tie
with 2-1 Win Over Muskegon Catholic
Visiting Western Michigan Christian used a fast start and strong finish to net a narrow 2-1 win over rival Muskegon Catholic Central on Wednesday in Lakes Eight Conference action.
The win moves WMC to 6-1 in the Lakes Eight Conference, tied with the Crusaders, who were previously undefeated in league play.
Ten minutes into the contest, Maddie Woods connected with Emily Rosema, who ripped a shot past the MCC keeper from 18-yards out to give the Warriors a 1-0 lead. Just 10 minutes later, Abby Oppenhuizen took a cross pass from Woods and buried the shot in the net to give the Warriors a 2-0 halftime lead.
The Crusaders would get on the scoreboard with three minutes left in the game to draw within one, but the Warrior defense would fend them off the rest of the game.
"We played very well tonight against a great team," said WMC head coach David Hulings. "MCC was missing a couple of their top players and it certainly made a difference in their attack. But, we had two very good goals tonight that would have been great goals against most teams. I thought this was one of our better passing games of the season and we got better with our off-the-ball movement.
WMC moves to 8-9 overall and 6-1 in league play. With the win, the Warriors are currently tied with MCC in the Lakes Eight Conference. The Warriors travel to Orchard View on Tuesday for their final league contest of the season.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Ludington High School
6.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 2 - 0
Warriors Split with North Muskegon
GAME 1: North Muskegon 3, WMC 2
Jamo Goorman and Nathan VanderWeide led Warrior hitting in Game 1 with two each. Jaxon Duer pitched five scoreless innings in the loss. The Warriors held a lead into the final inning, where North Muskegon orchestrated a walk-off ending.
GAME 2: WMC 5, North Muskegon 3
VanderWeide picked up the win in Game 2, throwing four innings with three strikeouts. Goorman connected for two hits, while Nick Moser and Michael Kamps each had one.
“It was nice to bounce back and win Game 2 after losing the late lead in Game 1,” said WMC head coach Chris VanHekken. “We felt our defense let us down in Game 1.
“Jaxon Duer was great for us tonight on the mound. I brought him back in Game 2 with runners on in the sixth and he shut it down for us. He had eight strikeouts on the night in a total of six and one-third innings. Nathan also pitched fantastic tonight.”
The Warriors are now 12-6 overall.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Manistee High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 1 - 0
Warriors Down Manistee 1-0
The Western Michigan Christian girls soccer team continued their charge back toward .500 with another Lakes Eight Conference victory over Manistee on Wednesday, 1-0.
The win came as the Warriors celebrated Senior Night at home. The party kicked off early as sophomore Claudia Kingma buried a pristine shot from the top of the box, assisted on a crisp pass by Emily Myers.
“It was great to honor our two senior captains tonight, Maddie Woods and Ashlyn Lane,” said WMC head coach David Hulings. “We also have a faithful senior manager, Annika Erickson, who is away on a mission trip. These three have been very faithful in their roles for the team. It was great to be able to take time as a team and fans and school community to honor their hard work.
“Although we defeated Manistee last month, at their place, by a greater score, this game was a tougher defense. Our attack was great, but we didn’t finish well tonight. I thought the ball movement was great, and the player off-ball movement was also as well as we have played. Our attacker made some great angled runs and we had midfielders making great passes to space.
“We have a four-game win streak, but we have a very tough game on Fridaynight against North Muskegon. They are by far the best team in our district and are playing great soccer.”
The winning streak has pushed WMC’s record to 6-8 overall and 4-1 in conference. Kick off Friday is scheduled for 5 p.m. at North Muskegon.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Whitehall High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 3 - 2
Warriors Score Another Comeback Win!
Host Western Michigan Christian girls soccer scored a 3-2 comeback win over Whitehall on Monday in non-conference action.
After falling behind 2-0 early on in the contest, WMC freshman Natalie Riksen scored two goals late in the first half to tie the game at 2-2 at the half.
In the second half, Anna Sytsema fired a shot from 25 yards out that ripped past the keeper and into the top shelf of the net for what proved to be the game-winning goal.
“This was a great game for us to start the week,” said WMC head coach David Hulings. “The girls have had a lot of games on short rest and it seems to take awhile for us to get our legs and shape. The girls seem to come alive with the first goal. Natalie scored that first goal by simply outworking a defender and, like Friday night, found the side netting.
“The second goal was with about two seconds on the clock in the first half. Claudia Kingma took a quick restart and found Sytsema on the flank. With the time counting down, Anna sent a great ball across the box to sophomore Adayla Liggett, who touched the ball to the back post and Natalie finished again, placing the ball just past reaching keeper.
“The third goal came from a great drop pass to midfielder Anna Sytsema, who took the shot from about 25 yards out. We were able to close out the game from there and get a big win at home.”
The Warriors improve to 5-8 overall and will host league-foe Manistee on Wednesday night.
WMC is 3-1 in the Lakes Eight Conference.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Musk. Oakridge H.S.
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 3 - 2
Warriors Fight Back after Being Down 2-0
for 3-2 Win Over Muskegon Oakridge
The Western Michigan Christian girls soccer team took a dramatic comeback 3-2 victory over Oakridge on Friday night.
The Eagles jumped out to a 2-0 lead early, but WMC fought back with vigor. Freshman Natalie Riksen started the comeback, finishing an assist by Morgan Kinnucan into the side netting to bring a 2-1 deficit into halftime.
Three minutes into the second half, Anna Sytsema tied the game, assisted by Maddie Woods.
“Natalie received a great ball by Morgan and finished like an upperclassman,” said WMC head coach David Hulings. “Anna did a good job finishing as well. She didn’t hesitate to find the side of the net and that goal, giving us the energy we needed for the rest of the game.”
The game-winner came via an Oakridge own-goal on a throw-in by Claudia Kingma.
“It was nice to get the victory,” Hulings said. “We had to work to get into the box and get that opportunity.
“This was our third game this week. We had tired legs. This was a great game for our girls in regard to both character and learning our system of play. Though we have more to go, I could not be more proud of this team.”
The win ties a nice bow on a busy week of play before the Warriors participate in a unique opportunity over the weekend, as they head to Chicago to pack meals for the underprivileged.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Muskegon Catholic Central
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: -
WARRIOR SOCCER FALLS TO MCC
The Western Michigan Christian girls soccer team fell to rival Muskegon Catholic Central 2-0 in a Lakes Eight Conference home game Monday night.
The teams played to a 0-0 tie the first half, but MCC's Emily Olsen and Talia Tyler found the net midway through the second half.
The Warriors only managed two shots on goal in the loss, as the team continues to battle through injuries and illnesses and a slow start to the spring with a 2-8 record overall.
“Our girls worked hard,” said WMC head coach David Hulings. “I thought the first half of the game was a good half for us. But, with so many players out of the game, we simply ran out of leg strength. Us playing three games on Saturdaydid not help today.
“We had a tough time staying with MCC in the second half and into the wind. We will continue to work hard and find a way to solve some of the problems in our control. We are going to train the same whether we are 8-2 or 2-8.”
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Ludington High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 1 - 0
WMC played host to Ludington. The game featured a lot of back and forth action, but the Warriors struck for the first and only goal of the game in the second half. Adayla Liggett sent a pass forward to Emily Meyers who found the net. One goal was all the Warriros needed to claim the win as they are now 2-4 and 2-0 in conference.
Coach David Hulings: This was such a “work-ethic” game for our girls. We were limited tonight with another three players out with injury. That is tough for an already young team. But, even with limited players, the team was able to pull out the win. We had a group of girls on the field with just a big heart.
The goal scored was a perfect example of a team coming together. We connected a four perfect passes, ending on a great throw ball by Adayla Liggett. She hit Emily Meyer in stride who finish a perfect shot side netting. We had worked on combination play during our last practice and the girls put it together.
Ashley Lane was in goal and kept us in the game with some great play off her line. We were able to shut down their attack and prevent a lot of difficult shots on goals.
Our next games are in Lansing for a three game tournament on Saturday.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Manistee High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Win: 4 - 1
The Warriors traveled north to take on Lakes 8 opponent, Manistsee, and came home with a conference win. Adayla Liggett struck first for the Warriors, followed by Morgan Kinnucan's goal to put the Warriors up 2-0 heading into half. The second half was similar as the Warriors picked up two more goals. The first goal in the second half came from Carli Betten. Mogan Kinnucan tacked on her second and the team's final goal of the game. Manistee also scored in the second half to make the game a 4-1 Warriors victory. Anna Sytsema and Claudia Kingma led the Warriors with 2 assists each.
Coach David Hulings:
This was our first victory and it was nice to see the players learning the system. We had some great movement. The first half we had difficulty connecting but we figured it out and started to link up. It was great to have some players back. We play a tough team (Ludington) on Wednesday.
*Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Multiple Opponents*
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: -
Girls Soccer plays in North-South Challenge:
In the third annual North-South Challenge the Warriors faced traditional state powers Charlevoix and Calvin Christian. Against Charlevoix, the Warriors faced a 1-0 halftime deficit. Charlevoix came out quickly in the second half, scoring in the 28th and 20th minute. That score remained as the Rayders won 3-0.
In the second game, Calvin Christian tallied two first half goals, but the Warriors were encouraged by playing the second half to a draw.
Coach David Hulings had the following to say regarding today's games, "Despite the scores and the losses we were able to use these two games to learn some things about our team. In the second game in particular we had all our youngers players in the game and were able to play a 0-0 half. So, loses are not fun, but they can be beneficial to our growth and it was a great growing day."
Week ahead:
Monday (4/23) - at Manistee 6pm **conference**
Wednesday (4/25) HOME vs. Ludington 6pm **conference**
Saturday (4/28) at Lansing Christian
9:30 vs. Lansing Christian
10:45 vs. Manchester
12:00 vs. Kalamazoo Christian
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Reeths-Puffer High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: 1 - 4
After holding a 1-0 deficit at halftime, the Warriors gave up three goals in the second half of their 4-1 loss to the Rockets.
Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Holland Christian High School
7.0 years ago
| Josh Glerum
Warriors Lose: 1 - 4
The Western Michigan Christian girls soccer team traveled to Holland Christian for their first game of the season Tuesday, dropping the decision by a final score of 4-1.
The Maroons jumped out to a 2-0 halftime lead, netting a corner kick and taking advantage of a WMC own goal. They made it 3-0 20 seconds into the second half on a misplayed WMC clear and tallied their final goal midway through the half with a clean outside shot.
With two of their starting forwards out with injuries, WMC struggled to find scoring chances. With eight minutes left to play, sophomore Chloe Mitchell fond a window at the top of the box and buried a shot for the Warriors’ lone goal of the contest.
“We are dealing with injuries, so we struggled to create scoring opportunities,” said WMC head coach David Hulings. “But, the team was organized very well in the back by Grace VanBeek, Jenna Houskamp and Madisynn Pearce. The three of them played well and kept our team in the game.
“We have much to learn, but this was a great first step for a very young team.”