The Clarkston girls? varsity soccer team got a possible taste of the playoffs, even though spring break doesn’t even kick off for another few days.
The Wolves took on district member Grand Blanc April 2 at the Clarkston High School soccer field and fell 2-0 on a crisp, early spring evening. The loss dropped Clarkston 1-1-1 overall this season. The Wolves? lone league game was a 1-1 tie to Birmingham Groves. Clarkston opened the season with a 6-0 win over the Holly Bronchos. Clarkston last played Farmington April 6 (results were not available at press time).
Head coach Tami Niemi said her team competed hard against Grand Blanc, who she claimed, is probably an early favorite to come out of the district.
‘I wasn’t too disappointed,? Niemi said. ‘We made two big mistakes, and they were able to capitalize on them. But, I think we moved the ball well, especially in our end and in the middle of the field. We just need to take more control at the forward position.?
Specifically, Niemi said she needs to see more improvement from two of her seniors : Kelley Boskee and Bess Ferguson.
‘Those are two seniors who have been on the team for quite some time and I have high expectations for them to step up and perform,? Niemi said.
Early in the season Niemi said her team did a good job of generating scoring chances for themselves, but that trend did not continue against Grand Blanc, Niemi said.
‘We either seemed to force bad passes or had a bad first touch,? he said. ‘We didn’t give ourselves as many chances as we had been. We lost a lot of possessions. We just didn’t make things happen. We moved the ball around well in our end, but we just need to focus on more offense.?
Since opening the season with the 6-0 win against Holly, Clarkston has been limited to the lone goal against Groves (at press time). Neimi said she is looking for two of her players to really turn it up a notch in the coming weeks
‘Ashley Hudson can be a force for us down the road. And Kristen Mercado was injured and I couldn’t play her (against Grand Blanc), but she can be a solid offensive contributor for us in the future,? Niemi said.
Clarkston resumes action following spring break with an away game at Andover April 20 at 4 p.m. The Wolves next home contest will be April 22 when they host Stoney Creek.