Western Michigan Christian headed back to soccer state finals after narrow 1-0 victory over Calvin Christian

By Jason Goorman
LocalSportsJournal.com

KENTWOOD – Sometimes after the hard work put into winning a big game, all it takes is a trickle and a roll to seal the deal.

Western Michigan Christian’s boys’ soccer squad got just what it needed to approach a new milestone in its storied sports tradition. The Warriors pulled out an intense, 1-0 win over Grandville Calvin Christian in the Division 4 state semifinals on Wednesday night at East Kentwood’s Crestwood Middle School.

The victory places the back-to-back defending state champions into Saturday’s 10 a.m. state final for the third-straight year where they will face Plymouth Christian at Grand Ledge High School. The berth into the state finals is the Warriors’ 17th appearance in the big game ties Detroit Country Day for most appearances in the finals since the MHSAA began sponsoring soccer in 1982.

“it’s incredible because every year it’s a different batch of kids,” said WMC coach Ben Buursma. “Different talents and gifts, and to see these guys grow, especially this year, to see them all gell together over the past four or five weeks, it’s impressive. Fun to coach.”

Luke Proctor headed in the Warriors’ lone goal and eventual game winner midway through the second half off a corner kick from senior Cole DeJonge. The high-placed corner kick flew through the air and reached Proctor in the middle of the goal box. The junior defenseman got his head on the ball for the shot, was redirected the opposite way off a Calvin defender’s leg and rolled into the net for the lead.

“As soon as Cole kicked it, I saw it coming right to me,” said Proctor. “I got a head on it, bounced straight down, and their guy’s leg slowed it down, but it trickled into the net eventually. Sometimes that’s all it takes.”

The goal that WMC needed to defeat the Squires came after the Warriors battled uphill throughout the game.

“That was crazy, first game back (after sitting out regional finals for a red card),” said Proctor. “It felt like a revenge game and I had to do something (for my team), so putting that in the back of the net, that meant a lot.”

Despite getting a high-quality scoring opportunity in the first two minutes of the contest on a Mason Bonnema head ball that was deflected just over the goal by Squire keeper Nate Steenwyk, the Warriors struggled to get near the goal.

“Calvin did a great job pressuring us in the first half and we did not do a great job moving the ball fast,” said Buursma. “So that was what we needed to do in the second half and it opened up some opportunities for us, and fortunately, Proctor got on the end of that corner kick, and that was what we needed.”

The Warriors were plagued with three undisciplined penalties in the first half that resulted in yellow cards for three of their more talented players. The whistled plays put the players in serious check as a second yellow would have meant a red-card ejection and a man advantage for the Squires.

Thankfully for the Warriors, fifth-year Coach Buursma was able to connect with his squads’ early decision-making challenges and redirected their energy into offensive production.

“They’re smart enough to know they couldn’t repeat the same mistakes that they had made in the first half,” said Buursema. “So they knew exactly what they had to do to bounce back from that.”

After managing just one shot in the first half, WMC opened the second half on the right footing. DeJonge was able to send a through-pass to the speedy all-state senior forward Tekalegn Vlasma, who just missed finding the back of the net.

That quick momentum led to WMC keeping solid possessions on Calvin Christian’s half of the field. After taking the 1-0 lead, the Warriors managed three more high-quality scoring opportunities that just missed their marks.

“This was a game that would require, I don’t want to call it a dirty goal, but a grit goal where it’s just going to be a bounce and someone has to get on the other end of it,” said Calvin Christian coach Karel Malefyt. “That’s how the game was won today and all it took was one.”

While the Warriors had the roll they needed for the 1-0 lead, they continued to be inspired by the play of senior goalie Dan Minasian and the defense in front of him. In the final 10 minutes of play, Minasian came through with six key saves, two at point-blank range, to hold onto the shutout.

“Defense has made it happen for most of these,” said Minasian about his shutout performances in the postseason. “So, I can’t take the credit for all of them.”

While the goalie stays humble and acknowledges his defense first, the shutout was put to the test in the last few minutes with a straight on save from just feet away from the kick and save in the last second of the game.

With time rolling down to the final seconds of the match, Calvin Christian was able to get one last chance on a breakaway on a high bounce, but Minasian was there once again.

“All the form and training just goes out the window and you just have to do what you have to do to get behind the ball for the stop,” said Minasian.

The Warrior goalie nearly had his shutout ended with six minutes left in regulation too. Minasian was forced to come out of the box on a cross and grabbed the ball in the air, but collided with a Calvin player. Dropping the ball after the collision, a Calvin Chirstian player was there to take the rebound to the back of the net, but the referee called interference on the play, resulting in the goal’s cancellation and the ball awarded to WMC.

And now the Warriors prepare for another trip to the title game.

“It’s really exciting going back for the third time,” said Minasian. “I feel like every year it gets more exciting trying to keep that title and I think this year it feels really good especially because we’ve worked really hard for it this year. We’ve gotten a lot better throughout the year, a lot of underclassmen that have improved too.”