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Familiar Foes Meet Again
It seems everyone has interesting matchups and possibilities for the opening round of the state football playoffs, which kick off Oct. 30. I say possibilities because looking at the district pairings set forth by the MHSAA last Sunday, there could be some big-time second round games should our teams be successful this week.
That is true with Manchester, which opens with a familiar foe in the Grass Lake Warriors. The Flying Dutchmen knocked off Grass Lake 29-6 in Week 7, and have won seven straight from their Cascades Conference rivals since 2002. This is not to say Grass Lake is a pushover. The Warriors advanced to the state title game in 2006 and were the top-ranked team in Division 7 for most of last year (Manchester's 44-38 victory KO'ed the Warriors from that spot). The "game within the game" will be between Manchester's defense, led by Dylan Neff and Ben Stachnik on the front line and Kevin Mulcare, Brent Schriber and Stephen Sheler against Grass Lake's vaunted running game, led by senior standout John Vuocolo and sophomore Stephen Tyler.
Manchester (8-1) appears to be on a mission. Outright Cascades championship, check. Next up...making a deep run in the playoffs. The Dutchmen have enjoyed a successful campaign so far, but the main goal is getting back to where they were last year, and that's the regional final. Meanwhile, the Warriors are sick of losing to the Dutchmen. So this is shaping up to be quite the battle Friday night.
Should they advance, the district final Nov. 7 could bring another rematch if Clinton beats Adrian Madison. Clinton (8-1) won the Tri-County Conference title and earned more playoff points that the Dutchmen, giving them home-field advantage. Manchester, however, handed the Redskins their only defeat back in the season opener. The "Battle of M-52" has waged on for over a century, but rarely has there been as much at stake should they collide in round two.
On another topic, I have to mention my Adrian College Bulldogs, who got back in the MIAA title race with a 7-6 victory over Hope College at Holland Municipal Stadium last Saturday. Though 4-3 overall doesn't sound that great, the Bulldogs are 2-1 in the MIAA, one game behind clubhouse leader (and defending champion) Trine (6-1, 4-0 MIAA). Neither team could get their footing for most of the game, as the field was nothing but mud between the 30-yard lines. But Adrian put together its scoring drive late in the third quarter when Eric Suttie took a pass 55 yards into Hope's red zone. Suttie caught Mike McGee's 3-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter on a fourth-and-goal, putting us (sorry, Adrian) up 7-6. The defense took over after that, blocking a field goal and sealing the win with a big stop on fourth down with a minute remaining.
Why is this big? Adrian defeated Hope in consecutive years for the first time since the 1980's, and won in Holland for the first time since 1997. Probably no team has given the Bulldogs more problems in the past 15 years that Hope, so anytime they beat the Dutchmen (not Manchester), it's a good day.
That's all for now. See you next week, and HAPPY HALLOWEEN.
That is true with Manchester, which opens with a familiar foe in the Grass Lake Warriors. The Flying Dutchmen knocked off Grass Lake 29-6 in Week 7, and have won seven straight from their Cascades Conference rivals since 2002. This is not to say Grass Lake is a pushover. The Warriors advanced to the state title game in 2006 and were the top-ranked team in Division 7 for most of last year (Manchester's 44-38 victory KO'ed the Warriors from that spot). The "game within the game" will be between Manchester's defense, led by Dylan Neff and Ben Stachnik on the front line and Kevin Mulcare, Brent Schriber and Stephen Sheler against Grass Lake's vaunted running game, led by senior standout John Vuocolo and sophomore Stephen Tyler.
Manchester (8-1) appears to be on a mission. Outright Cascades championship, check. Next up...making a deep run in the playoffs. The Dutchmen have enjoyed a successful campaign so far, but the main goal is getting back to where they were last year, and that's the regional final. Meanwhile, the Warriors are sick of losing to the Dutchmen. So this is shaping up to be quite the battle Friday night.
Should they advance, the district final Nov. 7 could bring another rematch if Clinton beats Adrian Madison. Clinton (8-1) won the Tri-County Conference title and earned more playoff points that the Dutchmen, giving them home-field advantage. Manchester, however, handed the Redskins their only defeat back in the season opener. The "Battle of M-52" has waged on for over a century, but rarely has there been as much at stake should they collide in round two.
On another topic, I have to mention my Adrian College Bulldogs, who got back in the MIAA title race with a 7-6 victory over Hope College at Holland Municipal Stadium last Saturday. Though 4-3 overall doesn't sound that great, the Bulldogs are 2-1 in the MIAA, one game behind clubhouse leader (and defending champion) Trine (6-1, 4-0 MIAA). Neither team could get their footing for most of the game, as the field was nothing but mud between the 30-yard lines. But Adrian put together its scoring drive late in the third quarter when Eric Suttie took a pass 55 yards into Hope's red zone. Suttie caught Mike McGee's 3-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter on a fourth-and-goal, putting us (sorry, Adrian) up 7-6. The defense took over after that, blocking a field goal and sealing the win with a big stop on fourth down with a minute remaining.
Why is this big? Adrian defeated Hope in consecutive years for the first time since the 1980's, and won in Holland for the first time since 1997. Probably no team has given the Bulldogs more problems in the past 15 years that Hope, so anytime they beat the Dutchmen (not Manchester), it's a good day.
That's all for now. See you next week, and HAPPY HALLOWEEN.
posted by Ed Patino at
11:45 AM
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