Beverly Hills Detroit Country Day has 13 freshmen on its girls soccer roster. That has been anything but an unlucky number for the Yellowjackets.
Juniors Kennedy Bearden and Elle Hartje scored a first-half goal apiece to lead the host Yellowjackets to a 3-1 victory over Macomb Lutheran North in a Division 3 regional semifinal match at DCD on Tuesday night.
The Yellowjackets scored on a pair of corner kicks and took advantage of a Lutheran North own goal to build a 3-0 lead and advance to meet Warren Regina at 6 p.m. Thursday for the regional championship.
“Our bugaboo all year has been winning the ball in the air,” Lutheran North coach Greg DeCourval said after his team bowed out with a 13-9-2 record. “Twice, we didn’t win the ball in the air on corners and it cost us.”
Senior Kenzie Reuber scored with 10:19 left in the match to cut into the Mustangs’ three-goal deficit, but Lutheran North, a state semifinalist last year, could get no closer.
“It was huge,” DeCourval said of DCD scoring the pair of first-half goals. “Against a team with that amount of talent that’s that well coached, digging out of that hole is tough.
“But our girls battled. We gave them a run at the end. I’m proud of their effort and their heart.”
Detroit Country Day’s five juniors were ninth-graders on a team that went to the Division 3 championship game in 2015.
In 2016 and 2017, DCD competed in Division 2 but lost to powerful Birmingham Marian in district play both years.
Now the Yellowjackets are 18-4-0 and a victory away from a state semifinal berth.
“We are extremely young,” coach Laura Hamway said. “But they are extremely coachable. Our five juniors are all leading this group of freshmen.
“We’re able to use a lot of subs and put pressure on all over the field.”
Hamway attributed the own goal to pressure her team applied.
“She was facing pressure,” the coach said, referring to the last Lutheran North player to touch the ball before it went into the net.
Regina advanced with a 1-0 victory over Grosse Ile in the first half of the doubleheader at DCD.
Toledo recruit Betsy Lueck scored for the Saddlelites, who competed in Division 2 last year.