THE HASTINGS
Thursday, May 19, 2022Goalkeeper last of five Viking seniors to score
Brett Bremer
Sports Editor
It took most of the final 30 minutes of the
senior night match on Unity Field Tuesday,
but Lakewood goalkeeper Ellie Minard final-
ly became the last of the five Lakewood
seniors to score in an 8-0 win over visiting
Potterville.
The Lakewood offense was funneled to
Minard, pulled from the goal up to forward
for most of the second half, once her fellow
seniors Rebekah Storm, Lauren Upright,
Haydin Hawkins and Marissa Wernette had
scored goals.
Minard assisted on Wernette’s goal with
22:10 to play in the second half, centering a
pass to the top of the Potterville box that got
by Wernette. Wernette secured the ball, turned
and ripped a shot with her right foot that
found the net behind Potterville goalkeeper
Faith Hicks.
The Lakewood sideline had already gotten
on Minard for passing up shots to feed team-
mates, and moved her to the middle of the
attack where she peppered Hicks and the
space just wide and high of the Potterville net
with shots for more than 20 minutes. A Pot-
terville red card with 20:15 to play only
increased the offensive output for the Lake-
wood girls – now playing 11-v-10.
“She is a 100 percent a team player. The
team always comes first,” Lakewood head
coach Kate Barbour said of Minard. “She is
probably one of the most selfless players that
I have coached. I would she is in my top five
of most selfless players I have coached. She is
always, after practice, working with the
underclassmen or girls who have never played
before. She is the one sending out texts.”
Minard was happy trying to set up team-
mates, not to push through the crowd of
defenders in the box and to even give the
Potterville goalkeeper a few pointers to help
her better clear the ball out of her box.
“I was just trying to help her with her
kicks, because they weren’t going so well,”
Minard said of her advice to her adversary in
the net. “As an experienced goalkeeper
myself and the kicker for the football team, I
figured I’d give her a little advice, locking her
ankle out, coaching other people even though
they’re not on my team.”
Hicks was solid in goal though for the
onslaught she faced.
Minard had a shot deflect wide, one float
just past the upper right corner, she had a PK
which Hicks scooped up (one of two PKs the
Lakewood ladies failed to convert on in the
second half), a shot fly just wide of the far left
post, a couple more roll into the arms of
Hicks, etc.
With 6:28 to play, Lakewood sophomore
defender Cadence Poll carried the ball
through the center of the attacking third,
looking and looking to feed Minard. Her first
attempt was denied by the defense and even-
tually she had to just rip a shot into the lower
right side of the net from the top of the 18
herself to put her team up 7-0.
Finally, with about 40 seconds to play
Minard took a pass from Upright on the right
side of the Potterville box, took a touch for-
ward and fired a shot that glanced over Hicks’
right shoulder and into the goal to end the
game.
“It was a lucky goal, I am not going to lie,”
Minard said. “She got a hand on it, but it went
through.”
It is Minard’s third goal of the season. She
also spent some time as a field player in ball-
games with Portland and Stockbridge scoring
both of her other goals this season in the win
over the Stockbridge girls.
“She is one of those girls where I love her
in goal, but I also love her in the field because
she is very effective, especially on defense,”
Barbour said.
Minard was a field player much of the sea-
son as a freshman on the Lakewood varsity
playing defense and serving as the back-up
goalkeeper, and has been pulled out of goal
from time to time over the past three varsity
seasons – either for fun like on Tuesday or to
try and help spark the attack when a goal was
really needed.
“What I thought was cool was the team
work, everyone working together to get me a
goal, but also all the other seniors. Each of
our five seniors got a goal. That was pretty
fun on senior night,” Minard said.Rebekah Storm got her goal in the 26th
minute, snagging a clearing attempt by the
Potterville defense that found her right in the
middle of the field at the top of Potterville’s
penalty box. She fired it into the open net to
up the Lakewood team’s lead to 2-0.
Lakewood junior Elaina Haring put the
pressure on the Potterville defense that led to
Storm’s goal. She had already scored the
Vikings’ first goal in the 22nd minute of play.
Haring assisted on Hawkins’ goal in the
opening moments of the second half, in the
42 nd minute, and then Upright scored two
goals to put Lakewood up 5-0. Lakewood
scored three times in the first six and a half
minutes of the second half. Those were
Upright’s eighth and ninth goals of the
season.
That left Wernette and Minard as the only
seniors, who were honored at halftime with
their parents, yet to score. Wernette’s goal
was her first of the season.
“To get a win and to get all five seniors to
score and we had seven different girls score
today. That shows the depth of the team,”
Barbour said, “and the depth of the girls that
we have on the field. We’re pulling our goal-
ie, we’re pulling our center back and they’re
able to score. They were able to participate in
the play and look like a normal field player
out there.”
Minard said her team is certainly ready for
the upcoming Division 3 state tournament.
The Vikings face Olivet in an opening round
match next Wednesday, May 25, at Lake-
wood High School. The two teams tied in
their Greater Lansing Activities Conference
match earlier this season, but the Vikings are
looking forward to being at full strength thistime around. The winner of that match will
face Otsego in the MHSAA Division 3 Dis-
trict Semifinals at Otsego High School May
31 with that winner moving on to the district
final hosted by Delton Kellogg.
Lakewood closed out its GLAC season
with a 4-0 loss to Lansing Christian Friday. Itwas a game in which the Pilgrims led just 1-
at the half.
Lakewood has one more district tune-up,
against Lakeview Monday at Lakewood High
School.
The win over Potterville moves the Lake-
wood record to 4-9-3 on the season.DK girls hosting D3 district tourney beginning next week
Lakewood senior Ellie Minard (right), Potterville goalkeeper Faith Hicks (center) and Potterville defender Shayla Rose (left)
chase after the ball as it gets between them and the Potterville goal during the second half of their match at Unity Field Tuesday.
(Photo by Brett Bremer)Lakewood junior Sadie Brearley fires a shot at the Potterville net as Potterville's
Emily Cates (1) chases after her during the first half of their non-conference match at
Lakewood High School Tuesday. (Photo by Brett Bremer)
Lakewood sophomore Cadence Poll (23) deflects a corner kick towards the
Potterville goal in front of teammate Elaina Haring (10, left) and Potterville defenders
Carla Gonzalez (10, right) and Paige Monroe (12). (Photo by Brett Bremer)Delton Kellogg's Avery Barker (3) battles with Fennville's Valeria Ramirez while Ramirez
gets help from teammates Christina Mendoza (12) and Celeste Hernandez (12) to try and
keep the ball in the offensive end during their Southwestern Athletic Conference match in
Delton May 11. (Photo by Brett Bremer)Brett Bremer
Sports Editor
The Panthers were set to close out the Southwestern Ath-
letic Conference varsity girls’ soccer season at Saugatuck
last night, May 18.
The DK girls sported a 4-8-2 overall record and a 3-5 mark
in the SAC heading into the match at Saugatuck.
Kalamazoo Christian ran its SAC record to 9-0 with an
8-0 win over the Delton Kellogg girls in Delton Monday
afternoon.
Goals have been tough to come by recently for the DK
girls. Wyoming Lee scored a 2-0 win over the visiting DK
girls last Friday in a non-conference match. Fennville took
a a 4-0 win over the DK girls last Wednesday, May 11, in a
SAC match in Delton.
The Panthers were within 1-0 at the half of the Fennville
girls, but the Blackhawks struck for three goals in the first
half of the second half to take control of the ballgame.
The state postseason begins next week. Delton Kellogg is
hosting its MHSAA Division 3 District Tournament. The
Panthers will host Portland in a district opener May 25 at 6
p.m. The winner of that match will face either Comstock or
Parchment in the district semifinals May 31. The semifinal
round will be at home sites, depending on the competitors
with the district championship match back at DKHS.
Lakewood and Olivet will meet in another district opener
May 25 with the winner of that match facing Otsego in the
district semifinals May 31. Otsego is the district’s top seed
currently sporting an 11-3-1 record.Delton Kellogg's Maelea Martin (12) works to get the ball away
from Fennville's Valeria Ramirez during their SAC Valley contest
on the turf in Delton May 11. (Photo by Brett Bremer)