Sports
Clawson Soccer Gearing Up For Districts
The Trojans set to open playoffs on Monday against Harper Woods at home.
The varsity boys soccer team knows what its like to go home early.
Macomb Lutheran North has sent the Trojans packing from the playoffs prior to the district finals the past two seasons in a pair of really close games.
The Mustangs escaped with a 1-0 win in the first round two years ago. In the second round last year, overtime couldn’t even settle things between the schools.
Find out what's happening in Clawsonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“It was a double overtime 1-1 tie that we lost in a shootout,” Clawson head coach Jared Kullman said. “So it’s been a couple of real good games that we’ve played against them the last few years.”
The Trojans are ready to put a stop to that losing streak.
Find out what's happening in Clawsonfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“They’ve knocked us out the last two years, so if that game does come we will have a little bit emotionally invested into it,” Kullman said.
The teams would meet in the second round if both win in the opening round on Monday. Clawson has to get past Harper Woods on their home field at 4:30 p.m. and Lutheran North has to beat South Lake.
“We played Harper Woods a couple of years ago in our district and we did win,” Kullman said. “But we don’t look past anybody.”
That philosophy has worked really well for Kullman’s team during the regular season. The Trojans went into their final game of the season 15-0-1 overall and 11-0-1 in the Macomb Area Conference Gold division.
Clawson’s undefeated record locked up a Gold title for the first time ever. The Trojans won the Silver division in 2009, but was bumped up a division last year.
“We took a minute to celebrate the championship and then got right back to work,” Kullman said. “They are trying to stay focused on all their goals.”
The number one item on that list? A district title. And Kullman thinks his team's chances are high. The difference between this year’s roster and the last couple of years is how much experience they have.
“A good chunk of the backbone of the team have been here for three years,” Kullman said. “It’s their senior year. I think our chances are better this year than they’ve been in the past.”
