GAME OF THE WEEK: Play-by-Play Recap

#1 Hudsonville Girls vs #2 Grandville Girls

OK Red Heavyweight Clash | District Seeding Implications

The stage was set.

Two undefeated teams in conference play.

Both 0-0 in District play. A rivalry sitting at 2-1 in favor of Hudsonville.

And a Grandville program chasing its first District Seeding win in over a decade over the Eagles.

Grandville did what they always do… they showed up. But this wasn’t a normal night.

A packed house. A loud one. The kind of environment where every possession feels heavier.

Even Head Coach Chloe Graverson said it best:

“My ears were definitely ringing after the game… there was no way the girls could hear me. It was rough.”

And yet… they found a way.

Let’s Get Into It:

Daniel Esjmont and Craig Peterman were the zebras calling the game, two of the best officials the MWPA officiating crew has to offer for the Game of the Week.

Head Coach Chloe Graverson led the Bulldogs.Head Coach Ian Hewitt led the Eagles.

Starting the action for Grandville was Sophomore #15 Lyza VanPopering, winning the opening sprint and giving the Bulldogs first possession.

The teams traded blows for nearly four minutes before anyone could solve the cage.

Then: #8 Madi Lemmon.

The Sophomore put Grandville on the board first with the lone goal of the opening period (2:56). The Bulldogs closed the quarter drawing the only exclusion, sending Week 3 Player of the Week Grace Van De Burg to the corner (:33).

A defensive chess match… for now.

Q2 Offensive Explosion: Floodgates Opened

Senior #18 Lauren Graverson was called for an exclusion within the first 10 seconds of the second quarter (6:50), which saw Senior #4 Josie Horlings send in the equalizer on the power play (6:40). However, Grandville matched in kind. Eagles Junior #20 Jaycee Clemens was tangled up and sent to the exclusion corner (6:36), where Senior #6 Aliyah Garcia blasted the go-ahead goal on the advantage play (6:14) to give Grandville a 2-1 lead.

The Bulldogs lead did not last long, as Junior #17 Tessa Graverson was excluded (5:58), opening the door for Horlings to fire in another neutralizer goal (2-2; 5:48), her second in the contest.

A red-hot Lauren Graverson drove the ball up the pool and demonstrated pure dominance and physicality by pushing her defender to her sweet spot and delivering the Graverson Special just 11 seconds later (5:37), giving the Bulldogs the edge over the Eagles at 3-2.

Three minutes went by with the teams settling down before something interesting happened—#11 Van De Burg was sent to the exclusion box for the second time, putting her in exclusion trouble late in the first half (2:29). Knowing Van De Burg’s aggressive defensive style, this required a defensive system change by the Eagles to keep her in the game.

For her second goal of the game, Garcia sniped in another, creating the largest lead of the night so far at 4-2 (2:17). However, the Eagles had a quick answer from Junior #14 Makenzie Milward, bringing it back to a one-goal game (4-3; 2:04).

Just under a minute and a half later, T. Graverson struck gold for the first time in the contest (5-3; 1:21)… however, caught up in the excitement, Tessa Graverson saw herself sent to the exclusion corner (1:02) again for the second time before the half.

Closing out the half with a goal was Junior #10 Nora VanEerden, making it 5-4 in favor of the Bulldogs.

So far, the story of the match was Grandville controlling the offensive game, with Hudsonville chasing the Bulldogs to equalize.

Q3: Pressure Cooker

After five minutes of rest and adjustments on both ends, the teams lined up for the sprint, where VanPopering won it again. That led to a buzzer-beater goal from Lauren Graverson at 6:30, giving the Bulldogs a two-goal lead again (6-4).

Before the Bulldogs could get comfortable, Senior #12 Katelyn Wiles inched the Eagles back into the game, making it 6-5. Off an Eagles timeout, the Eagles trapped Lemmon for an exclusion and had an opportunity to tie the game, but the chance fell short… opening the door for a Lauren Graverson hat-trick goal at 4:50 in the third quarter, making it 7-5.

Also, getting caught up in the excitement, Lauren Graverson was called for her second exclusion (4:29).

Should I say it?

Creating a Grave² situation for the Bulldogs, who rely on Lauren Graverson’s offensive prowess and Tessa Graverson’s defensive leadership… and another exclusion against VanPopering (3:39).

Hudsonville converted on the second power play with a kick-back pass to Clemens (7-6; 3:37). The Bulldogs drew a penalty shot at 3:29 but could not convert to extend the lead.

Getting on the board for the first time, Eagles Van De Burg tied up the game (7-7; 2:38) for the first time since the beginning of the second quarter. However, it was short-lived, as Sophomore #7 Jada Frigmanski powered one past Sophomore goalkeeper #1 Meagan Rayl for the go-ahead goal (8-7; 1:11), heading into the fourth quarter.

Q4: Chaos

Both teams gave everything they had, the crowd fully engaged, as this game was just beginning… teams exchanged goals all the way to the bitter end.

The Eagles won the sprint, BANG!  Josie “The Equalizer” Horlings tying up the game at 8-all off a buzzer-beater shot (6:31).

HOWEVER!

The chef herself, Lauren Graverson, said “order up” and served the Eagles a piping-hot Graverson Special with 6:12 left in the game, making it 9-8. The next minute of the game proved critical for the Eagles, hitting a pair of goals from Clemens and Milward to give the Eagles their first lead of the game (10-9; 5:58, 5:09).

At 4:28 in the fourth, the Eagles drew an exclusion against Bulldogs Frigmanski, her second. Attempting to go ahead by their biggest lead of the night, the Eagles couldn’t convert, as the relentless Bulldogs staved off another advantage play.

“Siri – set a timer for a minute and a half.”

“DING! DING!”

Right on time, L. Graverson kept the Bulldogs’ dreams alive with her fifth goal of the night (10-10; 2:58).

Playing spoiler to the Bulldogs, Eagles Senior Milward notched a hat trick to give the lead back to the visitors (11-10; 2:36). Right when you thought the game was over, the Eagles lost sight of Fast and Fatal Garcia, who notched a buzzer-beater hat trick of her own to tie the game (11-11; 2:06).

In similar fashion to the game over the past weekend…

Everything on the line with one minute remaining. Top rank in the OK Red. A shot at the first seed in District 1. Tie-game tension…

And when everything hung in the balance…

LEMMON!

Drops one in the back of the net to seal the deal (12-11; 0:55).

Bulldogs take the W and another day to position themselves for the top seed in District 1.

Notable performances: putting in overtime during the Graveyard shift, Tessa Graverson with 7 steals and 2 exclusions drawn; Aliyah Garcia with 3 steals and 100% shot-to-goal conversion; 1A JV goalie Keagan Pierce with 7 saves.

The teams are now 2-2 in the series heading into Spring Break.