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Prep roundup: Traverse City Christian tops McBain Northern Michigan 2-0

james cook, the record-eagle, traverse city, mich.
·5 min read

Oct. 4—TRAVERSE CITY — Monday was just the second time brothers Henry and Frank Reineck connected on a goal this season, and the Sabres hope it's not the last.

Henry Reineck scored with 9:11 left to help Division 3 No. 7-ranked Traverse City Christian to a 2-0 win over McBain Northern Michigan Christian on Championship Field at the Keystone Soccer Complex.

Henry, a member of the Record-Eagle Dream Team last season, is one of the top goal scorers in the area again this season. Frank just started playing soccer again just this year as a sophomore.

"I had to get him an assist," Henry said. "So I put it past the goalkeeper and into the net.

"He didn't play last year. He used to play soccer when he was younger, and it's great to finally play with him. A weird feeling, but it's also nice."

If that connection keeps up — or any connections that lead to goals, for that matter — the Sabres are targeting their first district championship since 2013.

In that year, the Sabres topped Elk Rapids 1-0 and advanced to the regional finals. They haven't won a district final since, falling three times to the Elks in that span, including the last two seasons in one-goal contests.

"It's been a while since we won a district, so that's the goal," Henry said. "That's been the goal since the first day, so that's what we're going to try and do."

McBain NMC beat Christian 2-1 last year in a game shortened by weather.

"There was a thunderstorm, and it was delayed," Sabres head coach Roy Montney said. "We were about to start back up, and then a thunderstorm again. There were two (30-minute lightning delays) if I remember correctly."

Montney said games like Monday's not only give the Sabres (11-4-1) great competition, but it allows them to sub in a few less experienced players. Christian played five freshmen or first-year players in this contest.

McBain NMC is 20th in Division 4 in MPR ranking, just a few spots below Charlevoix. TC Christian is sixth in Division 3 for MPR.

"Recently, we've been struggling putting 80 minutes together," Henry said. "Tonight, we were focused the whole night and we put it all together and that was the difference."

James Thuente put TC Christian up 1-0 off a corner kick in the first five minutes, volleying a shot into the bottom corner.

"Most of the game it was a close, well-played game," NMC head coach Taylor Mulder said. "We made some silly mistakes in key situations that resulted in two (goals). So if we can pull those couple mistakes off, that's a 0-0 game — and that's something against such a high-quality opponent I would have been very happy with."

McBain NMC hosts Shepherd on Wednesday, a team the Comets tied 1-1 earlier this season.

Blake DeZeeuw made 13 saves for the Comets (10-3-4), who play in districts at Lakeview

"Titus (Best) did an excellent job playing on the wing on defense, and Blake DeZeeuw made some incredible saves," Mulder said. "He's like, 'Those goals are my fault,' but at the end of the day, someone else put him in that situation. It could have been a 5-0 game, could have been a 6-0 game if it weren't for Blake."

TC Christian plays the Traverse City Bulldogs on Wednesday and at Suttons Bay on Saturday.

SOCCER

Elk Rapids 2

Boyne City 0

Elk Rapids: No stats reported.

Boyne City: Kacey Gray 10 saves.

UP NEXT: The Elks (12-7-2, 7-1 Lake Michigan) travel to Kalkaska on Thursday. The Ramblers (8-5-5, 5-2-3 Lake Michigan) host Grayling on Thursday.

Harbor Springs 2

Grayling 1

Grayling: No stats reported.

UP NEXT: The Vikings (8-10-1, 3-6-1 Lake Michigan) host Oscoda on Wednesday.

Charlevoix 5

Kalkaska 0

Charlevoix: No stats reported.

Kalkaska: No stats reported.

UP NEXT: The Rayders (7-4-4, 5-2-3 Lake Michigan) welcome Harbor Springs on Thursday. The Blazers (8-8-1, 1-3 Lake Michigan) travel to Pine River on Wednesday.

Leland 5

Benzie Central 0

Leland: Liam Waskiewicz 3 goals on his birthday; Jose Guzman 1 goal; Brian Mosqueda 1 goal; Landon Allen 1 assist; Max Waldrup 1 assist; Logan DeFour 1 assist; Colby Connor 1 assist; Jimmy Dynomite shutout.

Benzie Central: No stats reported.

UP NEXT: The Comets (12-3-1, 7-1 Northwest) head to Suttons Bay on Wednesday. The Huskies (1-13-1, 1-7 Northwest) travel to Kingsley on Wednesday.

Suttons Bay 5

Glen Lake 0

Suttons Bay: No stats reported.

Glen Lake: Tucker Brown had 19 saves.

UP NEXT: The Norsemen (7-5-2, 5-2 Northwest) welcome Leland on Wednesday. The Lakers (3-4, 3-4 Northwest) head to Buckley on Wednesday.

Buckley 6

Kingsley 0

Buckley: Orren Renfer 3 goals (first career hat-trick), 1 assist; Landon Kulawiak 3 saves, second straight shutout; Carter Williams 1 goal; Beltran de Vera 1 goal, 1 assist; Andrea Rollé 1 goal; Garrett Ensor 2 assists; Cam Alling 1 assist; Rodrigo Boso 1 assist.

Kingsley: No stats reported.

UP NEXT: The Bears (10-6-1, 7-1 Northwest) host Glen Lake on Wednesday. The Stags (0-15, 0-8 Northwest) welcome Benzie Central on Wednesday.

Manistee 2

Oakridge 0

Manistee: No stats reported.

UP NEXT: Manistee (13-3, 8-1 West Michigan) travels to Fremont on Wednesday.

— Brendan Quealy contributed to this report

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