Soccer team defeats rival Clinton to finish out the week

#8 Senior captain Henry Wehrly sets to strike Manchester’s first goal vs. Clinton (Courtesy photo).

submitted by Scott Somerville

The Manchester High School boys varsity soccer team ended their third week of competition on a high note, following a 3-1 victory over rival Clinton on Thursday, September 24.

Playing away on a very warm fall afternoon, the Clinton team converted a perfectly placed free kick past an out-stretched Manchester keeper junior Anthony Bargardi to get on the scoreboard with a one goal lead midway through the first half. This only energized the Dutchmen, who quickly raced back with a goal from senior captain Henry Wehrly to tie the match 1-1 going into halftime.

Following rousing halftime speeches by senior captains Adam Pringle, Griffin VanVuuren and Wehrly, the Dutchmen took control of the second half. With a dizzying display of footwork to penetrate the Clinton defense, the second goal, and eventual game winner, was from junior Max Edwards. Wehrly scored the third Manchester goal for a final 3-1 tally in favor of the Dutchman. Assists were from freshman Luis Baron, sophomore Luke Somerville and junior Grant Tar.

Earlier in the week, on Monday September 21 the Dutchmen traveled for an away match vs. the Leslie Blackhawks. In a back-and-forth match, the Dutch were defeated 2-3 for their first loss of the season. Although the Manchester team had a higher ball possession percentage over the competition, the ball took some bounces in favor of Leslie and resulted in a victory for the Blackhawks.

Goals for Manchester were scored by sophomore Jacob Morin (assist by Wehrly) and Wehrly (assist by Somerville).

On Wednesday September 23, the Dutch hosted the Hillsdale Academy Colts for a 7 pm “under the lights” contest. Going into the match, it was anticipated that the Colts would be one the best teams the Dutchmen have faced to date. This was, indeed, the case as the Colts displayed excellent ball
handling skills and connected crisp passes throughout the match. The Manchester team stepped up their own play to closely match the competition and the result was a very exciting and closely contested game that remained scoreless past the 70-minute mark.

With less than ten minutes remaining in the match, the Colts drove down the left side of the pitch, deep into the Manchester side, and converted a difficult angle shot that curved into the net just in front of the far post for a 1-0 Colts lead. The Dutchmen surged in the final minutes with two excellent scoring opportunities but were unable to convert as time expired.

“It was a tough loss for us, but I felt we played a very good game, possibly our best so far, against a very good team,” said Head Coach Dan Tar. This will only make us better going forward.”

After six games, the Dutch have a four-win two-loss record. The week of September 28, Manchester will host Grass Lake on Monday 5:30 pm and, in a re-match of last year’s divisional final, Manchester will host Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard Thursday at 5:30 pm.

#9 Junior Grant Tar settles the ball vs Clinton (courtesy photo)

#4 Sophomore Luke Somerville passes forward vs. Clinton. (Courtesy photo)

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.