Faith Christian gets offensive on Lake Orion Baptist
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
CLINTON TOWNSHIP — With only 14 players and a roster full of sophomores and freshmen, Clinton Township Faith Christian has had its fair share of up and downs this season.
With the state tournament only a week away, the Patriots showed some signs of new-found maturity and a nice finishing touch Tuesday despite its apparent youth.
Sophomore Ethan Mleczko scored a career high four goals with an assist and Faith Christian wrapped up third place in the Fundamental Baptist Athletic Conference Red Division with a 6-1 victory over visiting Lake Orion Baptist.
Faith Christian only outshot Lake Orion by a 16-13 margin, including 10-6 with shots directly on frame. The Patriots were far more opportunistic, placing several chances on goal and finding the back of the net six times, which tied their season high.
Mleczko and Peter Mercurer assisted on each other’s goals in the first half, as the Patriots took advantage of a pair of Lions backfield errors in the opening 40 minutes of play. Faith Christian outshot Lake Orion 7-4 in the first half.
CUT BACK: Lake Orion Baptist junior forward Ben Case (right) tries to maneuver past Clinton Twonship Faith Christian's Ethan Mleczko during Tuesday's FBAC Red Division contest. Staff Photo | Dan Stickradt.
In the second half, Mleczko cashed in a second time on a breakaway only 21 seconds into the half for a 3-0 lead. He scored two other goals and Mercurer also tallied in the second half for Faith Christian (5-7-0, 2-4-0), which scored all four of its second-half goals in the first 14:36 of the period.
Lake Orion Baptist traded off nine shots with Faith Christian in the second half and even had three breakaways. Junior Ben Case scored from an odd angle with 19:34 to play to spoil the shutout, taking a pass from Evan Hojnacki and ripping a left-footed shot from near the end line that snuck inside the near post.
Despite ample pressure, the Lions could not convert again.
Lake Orion Baptist (1-10-0, 0-6-0) is likewise a young team with only two seniors and one junior on the entire roster.
“We are a very young team and it shows,” said Lake Orion Baptist coach Mike French. “I think we had some nice shots, but we didn’t score on most of them. I think it’s the fundamentals that hurt us. Our passes were off. The kids were making the right passes, but they didn’t have enough (pace) on them and (Faith Christian) was stealing passes and going in and scoring.”
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Category: High School, High School (M-Z), Lake Orion Baptist, Lake Orion Shalom Baptist, Prep Wraps
