Divine Child avenges Notre Dame Prep for C-D title
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
PONTIAC — The old adage in sports is that it is an extremely difficult task to defeat a team three times in one season. Dearborn Divine Child proved that theory to be correct Wednesday night in the Catholic High School League C-D league finals at Pontiac Notre Dame Prep.
After dropping a pair of games to Notre Dame Prep during the CHSL AA Division schedule, the Falcons turned the tables with a thorough 4-1 victory over the Fighting Irish.
It marks Divine Child’s first-ever Catholic League title in 21 years of playing boys soccer, as the Falcons debuted their program back in 1991.
“This is our first league championship in our history and we started soccer in ’91,” reminded Divine Child coach Eric Haley. “We’ve played in the Catholic League final before, but this is the first time that we’ve won it. It is very exciting for us.”
Divine Child (8-9-3) drew the No. 3 seed for the tournament, which featured teams from the AA Division and Tri-Sectional Division. This time around, the Falcons had the last laugh.
Divine Child scored three times on seven shots in the first half in building a commanding 3-0 halftime lead. The Falcons, who lost to the Irish by scores of 2-1 and 3-2 in regular season, was quick to post some sweet revenge in the CHSL finals.
Senior midfielder Spencer Wong staked Divine Child to a 1-0 lead with 15:28 left in the first half, picking off a clearing attempt before volleying in a shot inside the left post from 12 yards out.
The Falcons cashed in again 6:30 before the break when junior forward Evan Heiss retrieved a long pass from senior Andrew Fulan and headed home a short-range opportunity.
Divine Child poured some salt on the hemorrhaging wound with 4:45 left in the half, with Heiss taking another long pass from Fulan, beating his mark on the right side and ripping a shot that deflected off NDP goalkeeper Charles Felker’s hands and into the goal.
“I am not sure if they came out complacent but I thought we played with a lot of energy,” said Divine child coach Eric Haley. “Both times we played them we lost by a goal. I think making sure we got ahead again and (keeping the lead) was important for us.
“Tactically, we’re come a long way. We only have six seniors, so I think getting all of these guys to play together and finally our chemistry is coming along,” added Haley. “They were ready to go today.”
The Falcons tucked in a fourth goal on their first shot of the second half. After Wong was tripped up in the penalty box, senior midfielder Marcos Godinez deposited the ensuing penalty kick down the middle to help build an insurmountable lead.
After being outshot 7-2 in the first half, Notre Dame Prep (9-12-0) finally generated some offense in the second half. Senior midfielder Jacob Pusheck’s blast from 20 yards out following a steal spoiled the shutout with 31:08 to play.
The Irish (8-13-0) could not further dent the Falcons’ lead in the final 30 minutes.
“We came out very flat for some reason,” said first-year Notre Dame coach Ryan Elchuk. “We were very inefficient with our time of possession that we managed to have. We gave them opportunities that were dangerous enough for them to capitalize on them. We didn’t play hard enough, we didn’t play well enough.
“The seniors are disappointed,” continued Elchuk. “They had hopes of winning a Catholic League championship, as they should. That was one of our goals as a team at the beginning of the year.”
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Category: High School, High School (M-Z), Pontiac Notre Dame Prep, Prep Wraps
