MICHIGAN GIRLS SOCCER: Byron Center slips past Rockford in a pair of powerhouses; Midland pulls away from Mattawan on Beckett’s hat trick
- Jonathan Turner
- Jun 3, 2025
- 5 min read
NATIONAL SOCCER NEWS: www.nationalsoccernetwork.com
GRAND HAVEN, Mich. – It’s somewhat difficult to call a No. 12-ranked team edging the No. 3-ranked team in the state an upset, especially where both teams have put up impressive numbers all season.
Byron Center has opted to let things just be decided on the field.
Despite only being ranked 12th in Division 1, the uber-talented Bulldogs took down third-ranked Rockford 1-0 Tuesday in a Division 1 regional semifinals showdown featuring a pair of legitimate state title contenders at Grand Haven High School.
Byron Center will face No. 7-ranked and undefeated Midland at 6 p.m. Thursday in the regional finals also at Grand Haven.
Senior midfielder Morgan Malek – who did not play high school soccer the last two years and has signed with NCAA Division I Oakland University – scored the game’s only goal in the 20th minute. Malek uncorked a 25-yard free kick towards the upper 90 where Rockford senior goalkeeper Sierra Majeski got a finger tips on the ball but not enough to redirect the shot that sailed under the crossbar.
Byron Center’s stellar defense, anchored by sophomore center back Carli Alexander, made it stand down the stretch.
Behind a stout back line, freshman goalkeeper Nora Schans made six saves for the shutout, her team’s 15th of the season.
The Ottawa Kent Conference-Green Division champion Bulldogs (18-1-3) pushed their school-record win streak to 15 games with the narrow win over the defensive-minded Rams, the OKC Red Division champions. In the win streak, Byron Center owns a 67-3 scoring edge with 13 clean sheets over its last 15 games.
The Bulldogs last tasted defeat back on March 29, losing to Division 2 state-ranked East Grand Rapids (1-0) in the second round of the BC Invite. Five of the team’s goals allowed came in the first four games of the season, as the Bulldogs now own a 95-8 scoring edge overall this season.
Rockford, which only allowed six goals last season before bowing out in the district finals, exits the state tournament with a quality 14-3-3 overall record and a 50-10 scoring differential this season. The Rams finished 9-0-1 in league play and recorded 12 shutouts on their own this season and 25 clean sheets over the past two campaigns.
MIDLAND 5, MATTAWAN 2: Sometimes teams simply don’t have an answer for a standout player.
For many schools, few have an answer for Alahna Beckett the last couple of years.
The All-State Dream Team candidate netted the hat trick Tuesday night, as unbeaten Midland pulled away for a 5-2 triumph over Mattawan in a Division 1 regional semifinals match at Grand Haven High School.
Midland, now a perfect 21-0-0 on the season, will take on 12th-ranked Byron Center in the regional finals at 6 p.m. Thursday, also at Grand Haven.
Beckett – who plays club soccer for Nationals Tri-County, has signed with NCAA Division II Northwood University and now has 28 goals on the season – scored the Chemics’ second, third and fourth goals in the game to help her team advance to the regional finals for the second straight season.
“She had two breakaways in the first half that I thought for sure she would put in, but she was stopped by the Mattawan keeper and she’s a good goalie,” said 12th-year Midland coach Rodrigo Barassi. “But then she scored one and we were up 2-0, and then scored two more in the second half. She’s had a fantastic season and career. She has over 60 goals in her career and has been on varsity all four years. That’s more than anyone since I’ve been coach here. I have to imagine that is the record for our school”But we don’t always leave her on the field for the whole game,” continued the coach. “We’ve mercied some teams but I don’t allow players to score more than three goals in a game. I pull them off. I don’t need to keep someone on the field for that long and have then get hurt. I let some other players play as I’m trying to develop other players that can be goal scorers in the future.”
Midland, which features 11 seniors, was down in Division 2 last season but lost in the Elite Eight of that state tournament before bumping back up to Division 1 enrollment-wise for this season.
Tied at 2-2 at the half, Beckett simply took over. She scored on a header three minutes into the second half for what proved to be the game-winner before firing home her team’s fourth goal for the 4-2 advantage – also her team’s 100th goal scored on the campaign.
Elliott Hays sent home the Chemics’ fifth goal late in the contest to cap the scoring and ice the game for Midland, which is enjoying one of their best seasons in school history.
Mattawan, which captured its first district title since 2001 on Saturday, finished with a respectable 14-5-3 record playing a tough schedule. The Wildcats became the first school all season to score more than one goal in a single game on Midland.
It didn’t matter.
Jensyn Ardoun and Beckett, a pair of All-Saginaw Valley League First Team selections, staked Midland to a 2-0 lead in the first half only to see Mattawan tie it late in the first half on goals by Zara Pirbhai and Helena Schoenherr.
Defensively, Midland also shut down Mattawan’s Cassidy Parmalee, one of the state’s top juniors who should be a candidate for Miss Soccer in 2026. The Chemics have shut down many top-level players this season, posting 14 shutouts in 21 games while outscoring their opposition 101-8 this season.
The Chemics’ back line of Morgan Ludwig, Reagan Vokal, Kennedy Meott and Addy Sterling and sometimes Sydney Fulcher have been the main players in the backfield this season that have contributed to the team’s success without much fanfare. Vokal scored the game-winner in the 98th minute of overtime in the school’s 1-0 victory last week over Midland Dow in the district finals.
“We saw (Mattawan) play last week and we knew they had some very good, very fast players and we had to keep them from touching the ball,” said Barassi. “I thought we did a good job limiting (Parmalee) from touching the ball.”
Midland’s team goals-against-average is now at a stellar 0.39, while just six other schools were even fortunate enough to even score a single goal on the Chemics. Senior Niobe Marchalant was the goalkeeper against Mattawan but she also has two quality backups in Elle Arnold and Cady McPeak.
(Mattawan) is a very talented team. They were the first team to score more than one goal on us,” noted Barassi.
Mattawan bows out with a respectable 14–5-3 overall record, nine clean sheets and a 66-29 scoring edge this season. The Wildcats finished tied for second in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference regular season and also lost in the conference tournament finals – both times behind Division 2 third-ranked Richland Gull Lake.
Midland will now pivot to face an explosive offensive team that mirrors the Chemics in a lot of ways. Byron Center will take its 18-1-3 record and 95-8 scoring edge up against Midland in a game featuring two top-15 ranked teams.
“I told the girls that Byron (Center) is a lot like us,” added Barassi. “They don’t allow very many goals and they have scored a lot of goals this season. But I know if we play our type of game that we can do it.”
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