10/17/2006

TC Christian wins district showdown, 2-1

Yeiter qualifies for golf finals, aids in district soccer win

BY JAMES COOK

jcook@record-eagle.com

Record-Eagle/
Douglas Tesner
Suttons Bay's Blaine Fritz, left, and Traverse City Christian's Sam Meachum battle for possess- ion.

TRAVERSE CITY — Matt Yeiter could have one extremely busy weekend coming up, and Kent Eikey will be having surgery earlier than he hoped.

Yeiter's Traverse City Christian team won a 2-1 opening-round district contest with Eikey's Suttons Bay squad in a matchup of arguably the best Division 4 teams in the area that was played in a steady light rain.

The win sets up a potentially hectic schedule for Yeiter if the Sabres (19-2-1) can top Glen Lake on Wednesday in Suttons Bay.

Yeiter qualified for the state golf finals Monday afternoon with a 77 in Harbor Springs, then his family put his clubs in the car and waited for him to sign his score card before rushing back to TC for the district showdown. He drew an assist in the No. 7-ranked Sabres' win over the Norse (14-6-1).

"I had just enough time to rest in the car and get some food," Yeiter said after the soccer contest. "It'll be a busy weekend, but I'm glad I'm in that situation."

On Friday, he plans to play golf in the state finals at Grand Valley State University, then drive up to Suttons Bay for the soccer district finals, then head back to GVSU for the second day of the state finals on Saturday.

Eikey, on the other hand, put off surgery on the torn ACL in his left knee until after the season.

He was hoping that wouldn't come for a couple of weeks.

"There's definitely times when I tweak it, and I have to go off the field," Eikey said.

He tore the ligament in the first day of practice on Aug. 13, and missed just the team's first six games. He came back to score eight goals in 15 games, including the Norse's only score in the district loss.

Eikey knotted the game at 1-1 with 2:04 left in the first half, challenging the Sabre defense to create an opening for a shot — all while sporting a huge brace on his left leg.

"I saw the back corner open and shot it with my left foot," Eikey said.

TC Christian had opened the scoring on a goal by Layton Boeve 15:33 into the game off a direct kick by Yeiter.

The game-winner came off the foot of Mitch Wierenga with 13:28 left in the game, assisted by Jason Send and Matt Moll.

The game was a physical one that featured six yellow cards — four by Sutons Bay.

"Suttons Bay brought intensity to the field," Sabres coach Ron Christie said, "but our boys were able to maintain control."

The Norse had a slim 7-6 advantage in shots on goal.

"Great game," Suttons Bay coach Randy U'Ren said after the contest. "You could see the emotion out there. I thought we had the better play, but just like all year, TC Christian has found the opportunities to get the ball in the net."

Eric Pardini (six saves) notched the win in net for the Sabres, while Suttons Bay's Matt Ness made four saves.

The Norse almost tied the game late in the second half on several occasions, coming the closest with 4:15 left when Blaine Fritz hit Jesse Wright with a crossing pass and Wright's shot hit the crossbar.

The winner of this district has gone on to the state semifinals the past four years, one trip each by Christian, Leland, Northport and Suttons Bay last season.

"We can't get ahead of ourselves," Yeiter said.

It was the third meeting of the season between the two teams, with Christian earning a 2-0 win and the Norse gaining a 2-2 tie at home.