The Wayland boys’ soccer team pulled off an upset in the post-season district tournament at Richland Gull Lake.
The Wildcats, who last week completed the regular season with a 3-13-1 overall record, edged host Gull Lake, a team with a record of 7-7-2, by a 2-1 count. They had twice beaten Middleville Thornapple Kellogg and Hopkins once for their three victories before Tuesday night.
Missing their starting keeper and captain, Jake Larsen, the Wildcat defense stood strong early in the match, resisting what the Blue Devils were able to throw at them. Kyle Thelen made two big stops to keep the home side from taking the lead early on. Unfortunately, a through ball beat the back line and the resulting breakaway ended the scoreless game and gave the home team a 1-0 lead going into halftime.
The second half though, as it has been many times this season, was a different story. Chuck Wroblewski scored on an assist from David Ruszkowski three minutes into the half to tie the score and give the Wildcats hope for the last 40 minutes. The rest of the half was evenly played with both teams pressing to score the go-ahead goal and take control of the match. With 15 minutes remaining, Wroblewski struck again, this time on a punt from keeper Kyle Thelen that found its way over the heads of the Blue Devil defenders before he beat the keeper with his favored left foot.
“The last 15 minutes was some of the best defensive work that the Wildcats have put in all season,” said coach Ben Sleeman, and they were able to hold on and secure a district semi-final rematch against Otsego on Thursday evening.
Thelen made 10 saves in goal for the Wildcats.
The boys head to Otsego Thursday night to take on the Bulldogs in the second round with kickoff at 5 p.m.
PHOTO: The scoreboard tells all: Wayland 2, Gull Lake 1 in the district soccer opener. (Photo courtesy of Nancy Thelen)
