Newaygo Brings the Heat to Chip Hills

Photos and Story by Tara Hefferan

Newaygo Lions Soccer kicked off another scoring bonanza Monday night in Remus, topping the Chippewa Hills Warriors 7-0.  This marks the Lions second consecutive road victory, following Friday’s win in Muskegon.
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Newaygo dominated possession from the opening whistle, but it was not until just 19 minutes were left in the first half that the Lions got on the board.  As the Warriors attempted to clear the ball away from goal, Landry Hefferan Nordlund intercepted it, making a line breaking pass to a sprinting Lena Wagner.  From the right side of the box, Wagner sent a low ball past the Chippewa Keeper and straight into the lower left corner.  The Lions were ahead 1-0.  Commenting on her first goal for Newaygo, Wagner said “I was really happy to finally score first goal of the season, after a lot of missed chances in the last games.  The goal gave me more confidence in the game, and I hope it will result in more goals and good plays for the next games.” 

Serena Jeong watches for play to resume

Rachel Larsen is all smiles as she beats the Keeper to the net

Wagner’s opening goal unleashed a hot streak for Newaygo, with four more goals coming in rapid succession before halftime.  The first of these followed several give-and-go passing sequences, which advanced the Lions in front of goal.  In their scramble to clear the ball from danger, the Warriors committed a handball infraction in the box, leading to a penalty kick.  Wagner stepped up to the line, confidently taking the kick and again sending the ball into the corner of the net.  The Lions were ahead 2-0 with 16 minutes left on the clock.
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Less than a minute later, Captain Aby Lauryssens threw in the ball to Hefferan Nordlund.  From the top corner of the box, Hefferan Nordlund sent in a high-flying blast into the goal’s corner.  This brought the Lions to 3-0 in a span of just four minutes.

Valeria Torres prevents the turn

Evalyn Foster ready to put up a shot

With 11 minutes remaining, the Warriors attempted to send a ball up field from deep in the corner.  Hefferan Nordlund again intercepted, dribbling toward goal.  She sent a short pass to Wagner, who immediately dropped it back to her from the top of the 18.  Hefferan Nordlund made a one-touch pass to Wagner, who was making a run into the center of the box.  Wagner poked the ball by the Keeper and into the lower right corner.  The Lions were now ahead 4-0, with Wagner earning the hat trick. 
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The final goal of the half came with just 7 minutes remaining.  After the ball bounced off a Warrior defender at the 18-yard line, Hefferan Nordlund picked it up, this time slotting it to the right for a bolting Rachel Larsen.  Larsen eluded the defender guarding the right side of the box, then fired a shot past the Keeper into the top left corner.  The Lions entered halftime with a 5-0 lead.

Peach Thitisawat moves to close in on the attack

Lena Wagner readies the ball for the penalty kick

Returning from halftime, the Lions experimented by placing several players into new positions.  This included moving Captain Natalie Richardson from defense into the attack.  Richardson took little time getting on the board.  The play unfolded with Larsen, who was midway into the Lions’ defensive zone, dispatching a perfectly placed through ball into the path of a sprinting Richardson, who picked it up on the right side of the field.  With speed, Richardson raced toward goal, sending a banger past the Keeper and into the upper right corner.  The Lions were ahead 6-0 with 38 minutes left to play.
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As the Lions continued rotating positions and players, they gained valuable experience taking chances and trying new things.  This included Lion Keeper Ella Soules getting some field time, and field player Diana Hernandez working in goal.  Then, with 13 minutes of game time remaining, Hefferan Nordlund sent a long ball into the box to a sprinting Larsen.   With the Keeper caught out of goal, Larsen was able to make an easy pass into the net, bringing the Lions to 7 goals on the night and earning Larsen a brace.

Keeper Ella Soules makes a move while playing as a striker

Keeper Diana Hernandez celebrates her first game of the season in goal with Natalie Richardson

The win against Chippewa Hills was a good team effort, with every Lion getting playing time.  In the end, the Lions had 8 shots in the first half, with 7 of those on goal.  They had 10 shots in the second half, with 5 on goal.  Lion Keeper Soules faced just one shot in the first half, and one shot in the second.  Keeper Hernandez faced one shot in the second half. 
The Lions play next on Wednesday, April 24 in Big Rapids. 

Presley Wade smiles with her teammates