Soccer: Junior Chargers pick up first win against rival

by Cory Butzin

In rivalry games, records can be thrown right out the window.

Such was the case Monday.

The winless Midland Dow junior varsity soccer team hosted cross-town rival Midland and controlled the tempo for much of the game, before tallying a late goal to come away with a 1-0 win at H.H. Dow High School.

“This is the best game we’ve had so far this season,” said Dow coach Kari Partanen. “Everybody was working hard and nobody got knocked off the ball. We communicated a little bit more; we can always get better at that part of it, but we played hard and that was nice to see.”

The Chargers controlled the time of possession early on and were able to dictate the tempo of the game, but they couldn’t get that to show on the scoreboard. Every time they threatened, the Chemics repelled the offensive attack.

“(In the first half) we dominated,” Partanen said. “But we kept getting down by the goal and couldn’t get anything. We got some stuff figured out at halftime though.”

In the second half, Dow’s offensive onslaught kept advancing their attack deep into Midland territory. But the Chemics defense seemed more than equal to the task. Despite several quality scoring chances, Midland’s defense stood strong. They were bending, but they hadn’t broken.

However it seemed to be only a matter of time.

“I think they played really tough,” said Midland coach Erin Ireland. “It’s really hard, they were very tired. It was a long, hard game and very physical.”

That physicality finally took its toll late in the game. With the Chargers threatening deep in Chemic territory, the ball found its way to Anne Knoff outside the eighteen who had a clear shot and buried it in the corner with 1:26 remaining to give Dow the lead.

“We didn’t mark up on the goal kick and we just got out of position,” Ireland said.

Midland threatened with a late push, but wasn’t able to pull even.

The Chemics’ record drops to 2-2 with the loss. They return to Dow High Saturday to take part in the Dow Invitational. Game time is scheduled for 10 a.m.

Meanwhile, the Chargers picked up their first win of the season to move their record to 1-3-1. Dow will join Midland at the Dow Invitational.

Photos by Cory Butzin