Rugged match ends in 1-0 win for hosts Photos and story by Tara Hefferan The championship game in the CSAA Conference Tournament took place Friday night, with the Newaygo Lions traveling to face the Big Rapids Cardinals on their home turf. The Lions and Cardinals had tied in their previous match up and also shared first place standing at the end of the CSAA regular season. This latest meeting between the two teams promised to be an exciting one, answering the question of who finally would emerge on top. The match began under drizzling rain and high winds, giving the ball an unpredictability. The Cardinals dominated early possession, putting several shots on target but also finding the ball blown out of bounds by the wind. Lion Keeper Barbara Toth made a number of impressive stops, including diving to the feet of the Big Rapids attack before shots could be taken. The Cardinals used their speed to intercept Lion passes and goal kicks, which often hung in the air due to the wind. The Lions and Cardinals battled hard despite the conditions, ending the first half in a 0-0 tie. When the teams took to the field in the second half, the winds had died down. The Lions started with good passing and pressure. It looked like Newaygo might break the scoring drought, when in the thirteenth minute Grace Painter blasted by the last Cardinal defender and found herself one versus one against the keeper. Newaygo’s best chance of the game was denied, however, when the speedy Cardinal defense closed in right before the shot could be fired. This near goal seemed to energize the Cardinals, who reversed the momentum to their advantage. In the fourteenth minute, Big Rapids Julia Waltz sent a long ball to Kyra Couch, who netted the first and only goal of the match. The Cardinals continued pressuring the ball, sending another nine shots to Lion Keeper Toth. The Lions were not able to answer, however, and in the end, fell to the Cardinals 0-1 Captain Jaxi Long said “We worked hard, got some passes going. It’s a little disappointing that we lost, but we’re looking forward to Districts. We had a really good season, ended up second in the conference. It was a really good accomplishment. We work really well together.” From Coach Painter:
“When we took 2nd place in conference last year, I felt that BR was the better team. This season was different. We believed that we had every right to the conference title and we were going to make BR take it away from us. I am so proud of our girls for making the Big Rapids squad have to scrape and claw through every single minute of last night’s game to get that win from us. It was a great back and forth game from start to finish. We had quality shots that missed by what seemed like inches…maybe the wind had something to do with that! Either way, Big Rapids is a good team. Our Newaygo girls are a great team. I feel very privileged to get the honor of coaching such an amazing group of young ladies. One loss does not define us! We can’t wait for Districts to start next week!” The Lions are entering Districts with a 13-3-1 record. They have scored 59 goals this season, while allowing only 12 against them. The Lions are back in action at 4:30 on Wednesday, May 25 at home in a District match against Manistee.
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