By Joe Dandron
LocalSportsJournal.com

The Spring Lake girls’ soccer team has been dominant in districts, and Fruitport has been its most frequent victim.

The Lakers won their fourth straight Division 2 district championship on Saturday with a 3-0 victory over Fruitport on the Trojans’ home field.

Three of those championships – in 2016, 2017 and now 2018 – have come against Fruitport. The two teams have met in four of the last five district title games, with the Trojans last winning in 2014.

Fruitport Coach Jeannie McClain is accustomed to meeting up with the always-powerful Lakers.

“We face them every year,” McClain said. “Four years ago we gave them an upset right here at this field in a shootout. Puffer can sometimes be in the mix, but we almost always face off against Spring Lake.”

Spring Lake’s No. 7 Taylor Colquitt goes to the ground trying for the possession. Photo/Jason Goorman

The victory kept the Lakers on a very hot streak. They are 18-2 on the season and have won 13 straight games. They now advance to regional play on Tuesday against Byron Center.

Spring Lake Coach Becky May said her seniors are playing their hearts out during the tournament, trying to keep their varsity careers alive.

“Every game could be their last, and they have urgency every game and they fight to play again every time,” she said. “They really carried us to the end, especially getting that last goal.”

The Lakers found the net less than three minutes into the game when junior Taylor Colquitt sent a great pass through the teeth of the defense to set up Laney Peasley for her first goal of the game.

The second goal came nearly 11 minutes in, when a Fruitport defender sent a pass back to the goalkeeper, but Peasley flew in, intercept the ball and chipped it past Fett.

The score was 2-0 at halftime.

Fruitport had a great chance to gain some momentum early in the second half when senior Jaydie Hanks was fouled just outside the box, but sent a penalty kick just over the bar.

Spring Lake, meanwhile, had to play shorthanded in the second half, because two starters left the game due to injury.

But the Lakers still managed to add a third goal, from junior Madeline Zenas, with about 12 minutes left in the game.

“We needed to prove that we could score with t

wo of our players injured,” May said. “We needed that last goal. It was more important than the first two.”

Spring Lake outshot Fruitport 11-5.