06/09/2006

Suttons Bay cages Orioles, regional

Norse advance to Division 3 semifinals, 2-0

BY MARK URBAN

murban@record-eagle.com

ELK RAPIDS — Not this time, not with the history between the two teams this season.

Not to mention the DeFour family history that will be made today.

Suttons Bay beat Ludington for the first time this season on Thursday, 2-0, to win a Division 3 girls soccer regional title and earn the Norse (15-3-5) a trip to Wednesday's state semifinal at Sparta.

All of this within a day from when first-year Suttons Bay coach Ryan DeFour's wife, Emily, will be induced to deliver the couple's first child.

"All day today, I couldn't even think," DeFour said. "It was amazing. They're only 12 hours apart. The game started at 7 p.m. and she goes in at 7 a.m."

For some of the veteran players, a win over Ludington (11-10-3) was all they could think about. The Orioles had beat Suttons Bay in the regional finals each of the last two seasons.

"Finally we get them where we want them," Suttons Bay's Holly Orban said. "It feels good. My senior year, I couldn't ask for anything else."

Even DeFour was aware of the recent past with the Orioles.

"Oh yeah, I knew all about it when I took the job," DeFour said. "They said, 'Go get Ludington,' and I said, 'I'll try.' "

Suttons Bay accomplished the mission with a pair of second-half goals, one shortly after intermission and the second in the final five minutes.

Sophomore Alyssa Korson tallied the eventual game-winning goal for Suttons Bay.

Freshman Michelle Ness chipped the ball into the middle. When a Ludington defender couldn't get the handle, Korson booted it in from about eight yards out with 33:52 left to play.

"A lot of times we're a second-half team," Korson said. "It was close in the first half so we had to stay confident. We just needed to cross the ball like we were doing, getting it to the open person and just playing smart."

Senior Victoria Alfonseca added an insurance goal with 4:27 remaining. Goalie Kelsey Wick had a long clearing kick that Korson headed to Alfonseca for a breakaway goal that Ludington keeper Chelsea Fisher got a piece off, but couldn't keep out of the net.

With a regional title in hand, now DeFour can focus his attention on being a first-time dad.

DeFour said he doesn't know if it's going to be a boy or a girl. But there's one thing the new DeFour will be.

"A soccer player," he said.