Final Four Roadblock: Inter-City continues postseason mastery of Oakland Christian
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
TROY — It’s safe to say that Allen Park Inter-City Baptist has Auburn Hills Oakland Christian’s mark.
Not only have the top-ranked chargers defeated the eighth-ranked Lancer three times this season, but are now 4-0 lifetime against Oakland Christian in the state semifinals round.
The latest chapter in Inter-City’s edge on the Lancers came Wednesday night at Troy Athens, where the Chargers defeated Oakland Christian, 1-0, in double overtime in the Division 4 semifinals.
Inter-City Baptist (24-2-0) will tangle with third-ranked Muskegon Western Michigan Christian in the state finals Saturday at 12 p.m. at East Kentwood in a game that features the state’s al-time most successful small-school programs.
The game marked Oakland Christian’s seventh state semifinals appearance dating back to their first in 1993. The Lancers are now 2-5 in semifinal games with fourth of those losses, all-one-goal games, coming by the hands of Inter-City Baptist. The Chargers also knocked out Oakland Christian in 2000, 2002 and 2006.
END OF THE ROAD: Auburn Hills Oakland Christian's Spencer Hodges and the Lancers saw their season come to an end Wednesday with a 1-0, double-overtime loss to top-ranked Allen Park Inter-City Baptist. File Photo | Dan Stickradt
The Lancers also lost in the ’93 semis to eventual Class C-D champion Riverview Gabriel Richard.
Both ICB and Oakland Christian come from the rugged Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Blue Division, with Inter-City Baptist finishing second to Birmingham Roeper and Oakland Christian finishing third in the eight-school Blue Division. The league, annually the top Division 4 boys soccer conference in Michigan, has now landed a team in the state semifinals 17 straight seasons with seven straight representatives in the state finals.
The MIAC has even sent a team to the finals in 11 of the past 12 years with 2004 being the odd year out. The league has a history of multiple state-ranked teams dating back to the mid-1980s with several schools making deep runs.
“It’s some great soccer in our league and this was a [air of great teams going back and forth on each other. Unfortunately, one team had to lose and that was us,” offered Oakland Christian coach Caleb Combs. “I told the guys afterwards that they have nothing to be ashamed of, because Inter-City is a great program and we still made it to the Final Four. We had a lot more soccer talent last year compared to this year and last year we didn’t make it out of regionals. This year we had great teamwork and chemistry and we worked so hard. Everybody bought in and we were able to make a run to the Final Four. Years from now, they will be able to look back on that and smile.”
Inter-City Baptist sophomore Evan Kraatz notched the game-winner for ICB with 8:47 left in the second overtime session. Travis Myles sent a through ball from the right side and Kraatz was able to rifle a shot past Oakland Christian goalkeeper Luke Combs for the game’s only tally.
The Chargers withstood the Lancers’ pressure down the stretch to vault into the state finals for the seventh time in school history. Inter-City Baptist is 6-0 lifetime in the finals, including three championship runs in the past 11 seasons.
The other three championship teams came in the 1980s (1983-85) when current head coach Mark Kraatz was a player at the school. Evan Kraatz, the coach’s son, will try to add to his family’s and school’s legacy with another state title on Saturday.
Inter-City outshot its opponents 20-15 on the evening, including 15-11 with shots directly on frame. Nate Packwood notched the shutout for Inter-City Baptist on 11 saves.
Packwood made a pair of brilliant stops in the overtime periods to keep Oakland Christian at bay.
“I thought their goalie did a great job. He made a couple of great saves. If one of them goes in, then maybe the final outcome would be a little different,” offered Combs. “But we lost to a great program and we’ll wish them well representing our league in the state finals.”
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Category: Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, Featured Articles, High School, High School (M-Z), Prep Wraps
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