High School Roundup – May 1st, 2011

Remember, if you have a game report or photos you’d like me to include, send them (or a link to them) to me at t.w.sullivan1@gmail.com.

Detroit Catholic Central 10, Forest Hills Central 7

This is something that actually happened in my life. Goalkeeer Bernie Eisbrenner leads his team onto the field. With bagpipes.

On a sunny, cool day in Novi, two of the top teams in the state faced off at Detroit Catholic Central, as the Shamrocks hosted Forest Hills Central. DCC, led by future University of Detroit Titan Mike Birney, dominated possession in the first half, but went into the break with only a 2-1 lead to show for it.

Things opened up in the second half, with both teams having their fair share of transition and settled opportunities. With the score at 6-5, however, Birney showed off the difference between a future D-1 player and the rest of the field. As the Shamrocks cleared, Birney was double-teamed in his own defensive half by two short-sticks. After he split those two, a Ranger longpole came up in support. A quick dodge, and Birney was off. He carried nearly the length of the field, and shot from the right side 15 yards out, and buried it past FHC’s goalie low-left.

Though the Rangers would tack on another goal to make it 7-6, the momentum had shifted fully to the Shamrocks. Tommy Orr put in 2 of his 5 goals, and the Shamrocks led 10-6 before FHC put one more on the board to keep the score respectable. Birney finished with a pair of goals, but plenty of close calls.

Aside from Birney and Orr, the most impressive player on the field was FHC’s Collin Schlosser, who was one of the Rangers’ primary ballcarriers, in addition to being the faceoff specialist. He finished the day with two assists.

Clarkston Team Profile

The Wolves get the profile treatment from the Oakland Press. They’re a junior-heavy team, so the build is toward a deep run next year. Shocking that an 800-word article fails to mention that senior defender Matt Burtnett will play in college, at D-2 Rollins College.

Brother Rice Profile

Newsflash: Rice is good at lacrosse. The Warriors have only 9 seniors on their team (although 4 of those seniors are headed to the likes of Delaware, Michigan, Marquette, and D3 Emmanuel), and should be even better next year.

Power Rankings

You’ll be SHOCKED to see who’s at #1 in Oakland County. Actually, you probably won’t. I’ll post laxpower ratings early next week. Grand Rapids, Forest Hills Eastern and East Grand Rapids lead the way.

Joe Kemp Profile

Joe Kemp (Photo by Ken Swart)

Troy Athens’s Joe Kemp has led the RedHawks to an 8-3 record, but he won’t be satisfied unless his team takes home the state championship.

“I try and get the offense started by beating my guy and drawing another guy over which opens up a lot of options for us,” Kemp said. “That’s kind of how our offense works, we focus on being able to beat your guy first and then make the decision from there. We’ve got a bunch of guys who could just go right in a get a shot right out of the dodge but that’s not always what we’re trying to do. We’re pretty strong at moving the ball around and getting good looks so I just try to be a part of that system and then take advantage when I get an open look.”

Much more at the link.

On to the games…

Bay City Western 10, Swartz Creek 6

Taylor Parker scored four in the Warrior victory. The Bay City schools are getting lots of love in these posts. If you want to see better representation for your school, you can always e-mail me a report.

East Lansing 7, Waverly-Grand Ledge-Lansing Catholic Central 6

I guess 3 schools aren’t enough to beat East Lansing.

Flint Powers 5, Notre Dame Prep 3

Powers has been on a roll lately.

Flint Powers 14, Madison Heights Bishop Foley 4

See? I told you so. Kellen Ricker scored 6, while Dominic Hamper put in four of his own while adding 3 assists.

Tecumseh 10, Ann Arbor Huron 9

Bill Upton with another gem.

Wednesday was a dreary evening.  The rain had come down in torrents throughout much of the day, though it tapered off to intermittent sprinkles and light showers as the Tecumseh Indians played host to the Huron River Rats in a showdown between two Southeastern Conference lacrosse rivals.  The portents were hardly positive, and yet the evening produced one of those games that will long be remembered by all the players and spectators, as Tecumseh held out for a 10 – 9 victory.

The prose isn’t quite as colorful this time around, but I still want him to follow me around and narrate my life.

Huron 15, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard 13

I love me some Bill Upton:

With their six-goal lead restored, the Huron fans grew increasingly confident and relaxed.  But, the Irish had no intention of quietly finishing out the game.

Huron moved to 6-4 on the year with the win.

Portage Central 13, Mattawan 3

It was a big upset, as Portage Central has traditionally beaten the Wildcats by slim margins – if at all. Portage Central led by an 8-1 count at halftime and never looked back.

East Grand Rapids 15, Rockford 14

A nailbiter in Rockford, though the author doesn’t so much tell the story of the game as he does cram as many quotes from EGR’s Gunnar Elder(!) and Rockford’s Mitch Newton into the article as possible. OMG they’re cousins, got it.

Flint Powers 15, East Lansing 8

Dominic Hamper was the star for Powers once more, putting in 4 goals and 2 assists.

Remember, if you have a game report or photos you’d like me to include, send them (or a link to them) to me at t.w.sullivan1@gmail.com.