Friday, August 16, 2024 

Ionia 6-1 Win at Lansing Eastern -

Bulldogs Soccer kicked off the 2024 season on Friday with an emphatic win over the Quakers team that played much better than the score would indicate.

The first match of the season is always a bit nervy and the build-up to this match was no different. We have a young group that needs to find its way after having several seniors graduate from last season's  squad. Friday’s performance showed us that the players are up for the challenge.

The match started with Eastern keeping a bit more of possession but they were struggling to find a way to break through Ionia's alert defense.  Our guys did a good job of allowing Eastern to take the space we offered them and then pounce when the ball was there to be taken.

Over time, the players grew more and more confident and really combined well in an attacking effort that resulted in 13 shots on goal. On the other side of the field, Eastern did muster a few dangerous moments, but generally our defense did an outstanding job neutralizing their attack, while our 1st year goalkeeper, Junior Luis Lopez, earned his first win as a Varsity keeper.

Can't give enough credit to the team for the way they played tonight. It's tough to highlight stand out players when the entire team deserves a shout out, but here are a few:

• Junior Brady Diebel was involved in many successful one on one defensive battles in the first half that really helped to pump up the team. 

• Our midfield trio of Senior Carl Goeckel, Junior Derrick Santana and Sophomore Damon Lautenbach worked tirelessly (or so it seemed) and really kept the team driving forward while also protecting the back line.

• Junior Marcos Velasco played the lone striker role very effectively in pressuring their defense and also in pulling others into the attack while having a few cracks on goal himself.

Quick Stats:

Score: Ionia 6 - Eastern 1

Shots for: 13
Shots against: 10

Goals:

Derrick Santana (Junior) - 3
Marcos Velasco (Junior) - 1
Brady Diebel (Junior) - 1
Damon Lautenbach (Sophomore) - 1

Assists:
Marcos Velasco - 1
Carl Goeckel (Senior) - 1
Damon Lautenbach - 1

Goalkeeper: Luis Lopez with the win.
Saves: 10

Overall Record: 1W-0L-0T
Division Record: 

Next Match: Monday, August 19 @ Lansing Everett @ 5:30 pm

Note: While the season has begun, we still have room for more players to join the program.
Parents and Students must complete the 2024-25 IHS Sports Registration in order to participate.