Grosse Pointe Farms, Grosse Pointe Woods

Grosse Pointe South soccer captures district; North and Liggett ousted

By Mark Vest
C & G Sports Writer

» click to enlarge « Photo by Sean Work Grosse Pointe South players Maxim Ganesch (9) and Alexander Detwiler (7) attempt to get to the ball before North’s David Kracht does in a district semifinal matchup Oct. 17. South defeated North 2-0 and followed that win up with a 2-1 victory over St. Clair Shores Lakeview in the final to capture a district title. Photo by Sean Work Grosse Pointe South players Maxim Ganesch (9) and Alexander Detwiler (7) attempt to get to the ball before North’s David Kracht does in a district semifinal matchup Oct. 17. South defeated North 2-0 and followed that win up with a 2-1 victory over St. Clair Shores Lakeview in the final to capture a district title.

After two overtimes couldn’t decide the outcome, it was a shootout that eventually decided a district championship soccer matchup between Grosse Pointe South and St. Clair Shores Lakeview, and it was the Blue Devils who prevailed via a shot by Jackson Yezback and a subsequent stop by goalkeeper Noel Fets to give them a 2-1 victory and a district title.

Earlier this season, South coach Stefan Harris listed winning a district title as one of the team’s goals for the season.

Mission accomplished.

Their victory earned the Blue Devils their district championship since 2007. Harris was pleased to see his team rewarded for the effort they have put forth this season.

“We started all the way back in May,” he said. “We knew at the end of last year when we lost to Livonia Churchill we did not like that feeling. We lost our first game of districts, and we made a promise we were going to be back and we were going to win our district, and we did it. It’s all the players. I put them in the situation, and they ran with it.”

Senior Mark Adamszek believes it was a team effort that helped propel South to victory.

“We never gave up,” he said. “All year we’ve been standing by each other. Even kids who don’t normally take penalty kicks just came in (and) no one on the bench doubted them. We had complete faith in our keeper. We knew we were going to win this game.”

Fets, along with Lakeview goalkeeper Zachary Raymond, didn’t allow a goal for the first 40 minutes of play. In fact, the game remained scoreless until South’s Jeffrey Woolstrum got a shot past Raymond with 21:40 remaining in the second half.

Lakeview’s Steven Gulino answered back with 12:23 remaining in the game to tie the score. It would stay that way through the end of regulation and two overtimes.

South’s road to the district championship started with a bye in the opening round, which was followed by a 2-0 victory over rival Grosse Pointe North in the semifinal round.

South was scheduled to play a regional semifinal game Oct. 23, after press time, against Utica Ford at Fraser High School.

You can reach C & G Sports Writer Mark Vest at mvest@candgnews.com or at (586)279-1112. Follow Mark on Twitter.