Huskies soccer still searching for first home win | News, Sports, Jobs

Michigan Tech defender Amelia Gregory battles with a Davenport midfielder during a game Friday at Kearly Stadium in Houghton. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

HOUGHTON — After finally breaking through with a draw and a win two weeks ago on the road, the Michigan Tech Huskies soccer team returned home last weekend and jumped out to a 1-0 lead against Davenport on Friday. However, that was where the good feelings stalled. From there, the Huskies were outscored 7-0 over the remainder of the weekend in a pair of losses, first to the Panthers, and then to No. 3 Grand Valley State.

“There’s some good and bads to take from it,” said Huskies coach Melissa Kuhar. “(We had a) great start on Friday. We were able to get the goal and kind of stick to that game plan initially, and then kind of just fell apart a bit and didn’t necessarily execute the game plan completely.

“Davenport was hungry. They wanted to win, so that kind of didn’t help our case a bit.”

Against the Lakers, the Huskies trailed 1-0 at half, and 2-0 with under 24 minutes left, but two goals in a stretch of two minutes put the game out of reach.

“Grand Valley, looking back at it, we kept them 1-0 at halftime, 1-0 until 24 minutes left in the second half, and then it was 2-0 until four minutes left,” Kuhar said. “We gave up two goals in four minutes at the end. So, (there are) a lot of positives there.

“They’re a very good team that could be for a national title. They’re a very good team. So, we take a lot of growing pains, but (there are) a lot of things that we can take from the weekend and build on. It opens our eyes to some things we need to hone in and fix.”

With the losses the Huskies fell to 1-6-1 overall, and 1-2-1 in GLIAC play. Kuhar said that while the record is not where they want it, the players are still fully bought in.

“I am happy I can say our culture has not wavered through all of it,” she said. “We’re 1-6-1, it’s not a fun record, but our culture has not wavered. That’s something I’m super proud of, because if our girls started going at each other, then we just cash it in for the rest of the year, but we’re not even close to that.

“That’s what I’m proud of. That gives me kind of a bright look into the future, into this weekend, into the games coming up, that we could still win them.”

The Huskies started senior keeper Ludesha Reynolds in the game against the Lakers, and Kuhar felt the senior gave the Huskies every chance to stay in the game. She faced 34 shots in the game, including 18 in the second half, stopping nine.

“I think ‘Lu’ played well,” said Kuhar. “Looking back on the goals, I don’t think any were pure goalkeeper errors. We had to start Lu. Bri (Barrows) got back at 5 a.m. that morning from her brother’s wedding downstate. Bri and Lu are very compatible and very similar.

“That challenge and battle is continuing, and still will continue. I don’t know what this weekend will look like for the two of them. They’re going to battle this week and we’ll see. But, we were kind of prepping Lu for that, leading into it, kind of playing her some minutes. I don’t think it was a big shock. I mean, yeah, you’re going up against No. 3. It’s going to be nerve-wracking no matter what.”

On Friday, sophomore midfielder Bella Vasoli scored the lone Huskies’ goal. The 5-foot-2 Vasoli provides the kind of energy the Huskies need to build around.

“Bella’s a workhorse,” Kuhar said. “That’s why we started her on Friday. If you watched our games against Roosevelt and (Wisconsin-)Parkside, she’s an energizer. She’s small, but mighty. So, that’s what we gave her that start, and she proved us right. She went in there and scored a scrappy goal. It wasn’t like she had a ton of space. She battles with the biggest girls out there and she’s one of our tiniest on our team. So, she’s just a workhorse that’s going to really compete.

“We kind of rewarded the effort she’s been putting in, and for her to get a goal was awesome. Hopefully we can continue to get her some, especially with some of our forwards out right now, including Brooke (Green) and Abbey (Sayers). So, yeah, she stepped up big for us. Hopefully, we can continue that momentum for her.”

Scouting the Cardinals

The Saginaw Valley State Cardinals are 3-3-1 on the season after falling to Wisconsin-Parkside last Friday, 3-1.

Senior midfielder Madi Bajis leads the team with four goals in seven games. Sophomore midfielders Emily Kolodin and Emma Bradley have two goals each.

In goal, senior Lainey Garbarz has played in all seven games. She has a 1.35 goals against average and a .791 save percentage.

Scouting the Bulldogs

The Ferris State Bulldogs are 2-1-4 overall and 2-0-1 in GLIAC play after earning a draw with Roosevelt on Sunday, 1-1.

They are led offensively by junior forward Katherine Welch, who has two goals and six points in seven games.

Senior defender Grace Sampson also has two goals.

In net, sophomore keeper Korinne Ihrke has played the bulk of the minutes. She has a 0.71 goals against average and a .828 save percentage.

Game times

The Huskies and Cardinals will face off Friday at 6 p.m. at Kearly Stadium in Houghton. Sunday, the Huskies and Bulldogs will battle at 12 p.m.