The Road to the championship is getting shorter and shorter as teams struggle to hold on to the lead in their respective conferences. Will West Michigan be well represented in the playoffs again this year? We think so! What do you think? Who do you think is the best team in the Midwest? Here is our rankings for this week. As always check out last weeks rankings to see if there has been any changes.

1.) Grand Haven (14-4) OK Conference Tier 1

The Bucs never dropped their sails this week as they spent time preparing to play Kenowa Hills on this coming Wednesday.

2.) Grand Rapids Catholic Central (13-4-1) OK Conference Tier 1

The Cougars roared their way to a very solid win this past Saturday. They defeated East Grand Rapids by five points as they won 6-1. They will face Rockford next Wednesday at Griff’s Ice House.

3.) Forest Hills Eastern/ Northern (12-4) OK Conference Tier 1

The Husky/Hawks keep plowing forward as the season goes on. They got past Big Rapids this Saturday and will look to do the same when they face off against East Grand Rapids next week Saturday.

4.) Mona Shores (12-8) OK Conference Tier 1

The Sailors had started the season horrible and almost didn’t even exist on the rankings when the season began. They are showing they have what it takes to climb the ranks however as they won two of their three games this past week.

5.) Kenowa Hills (14-4) OK Conference Tier 2

Beating Grand Rapids Christian on Saturday may help boost the Knights confidence as they go against our number one team this Wednesday. They are going to need all the help they can get as Grand Haven shows no sign of laying down and playing dead.

6.) Rockford (10-9) OK Conference Tier 1

Rockford started strong but has struggled as the season has progressed. They lost to Macomb Dakota on Friday, but will look to turn things around again when they play East Grand Rapids this Friday 8:00pm at Griff’s Ice House.

7.) East Grand Rapids (10-8) OK Conference Tier 1

The Pioneers loss to Mona Shores and Grand Rapids Catholic Central this week, but managed to pull out a win against Grand Rapids Christian. They will play Rockford on Friday.

8.) Lowell-Caledonia (16-4) OK Conference Tier 3

Lowell-Caledonia has cooled off as of late and this week continued to cool even more as they dropped another game to Bay Area Thunder on Saturday by a score of 3-2. They have a chance to get back on track this week as they will be playing three games in four days.

9.) Jenison (10-7) OK Conference Tier 2

Jenison lost this week as the sticks of West Ottawa handed them a 4-1 defeat. Their next game will be against struggling Lowell–Caledonia.

10.) East Kentwood(11-7) OK Conference Tier 2

East Kentwood beat both Hudsonville and Forest Hills Central this past week. They will look to continue winning against South Christian next week Friday.

Honorable Mention

11.) Reeths-Puffer (13-6-1) OK Conference Tier 2

A three win week is just what the Rockets needed to get back into our rankings this week. They will play Forest Hills Central Wednesday.

12.) West Ottawa (12-9-1) OK Conference Tier 3

West Ottawa had a busy week this past week as they hosted their pink game and also recorded two wins and a loss for the week. They will drop the puck with GR Christian on Saturday.

13.) Hudsonville (6-14) OK Conference Tier 2

Hudsonville needs to drink some coffee and wake up as the season continues. They lost twice this week at the hands of Reeths-Puffer and East Kentwood. They will get a rematch with Kenowa Hills next Saturday in hopes of paying the Knights back for the blowout they received earlier this season.

14.) Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (7-12) OK Conference Tier 2

Another one win, one loss, week keeps the Rangers right were they were in the rankings. They, like Hudsonville, will look to finish strong as the season winds to a close.

15.) Northview/Comstock Park/Sparta(8-6-2) OK Conference Tier 3

The Cats had a rough week as they dropped three games. They did put up a great fight however against West Ottawa and only lost by one goal 6-5.

East Kentwood Ice Arena was the site for a great game between West Catholic and South Christian this afternoon as the two teams faced off in hopes of improving their record. As soon as the puck dropped the two teams went toe to toe like boxers as each took their opportunities to deal their opponent a weakening blow. Neither team succeeded for the first ten minutes however as both goalies and defenses stood strong. With 13:38 left in the first period, Alex Devries danced through the Falcons D and was awarded with a great opportunity that was shrugged off my Peter Hansknecht, keeping the game at a stalemate. Finally with 9:22 remaining in the period. South Christian forward Blake Devries weaseled his way into West Catholic’s zone shorthanded and ripped a shot over the glove hand of Hansknecht to score the first goal of the game. West Catholic retaliated with three great shots over the course of the next three minutes, but each one was turned aside by sprawling goaltender Dennis Hoekzema. His effort kept the Sailors in the game until they managed to build themselves some breathing room when Alex Devries netted a goal with 6:31 to go in the period. The period would end with the Sailors leading 2-0.

The second period began with a scare as South Christian’s Jeff Ookstdyk was boarded into the wall and remained motionless on the ice for a few minutes. After being checked over by the trainer, he did manage to skate off the ice on his own. The hit seemed to spur his teammates on for the rest of the period as they took advantage of of two of their three powerplays. On the second powerplay of the period, South Christian’s Defenseman Jake Holden shot the puck towards the net and it ricocheted off fellow teammate Alex Devries giving Alex hissecond goal of the night. Their second powerplay goal came late in the period as Blake Devries scored only 7 seconds into the penalty time. The Falcons did manage to score during the period as Captain Kyle O’Hearn finally managed to get the puck into the net shortly after the Sailors first powerplay goal. The period would end with the score being 4-1.

The final period saw a penalty again hurt West Catholic as Jake Holden ripped a slap shot through the defender and past Peter Hansknecht only 8 seconds into the powerplay. The rest of the game would be a hard fought battle, but would grant no more goals to either team as the Sailors took home a convincing 5-1 win.

After this nice win, the Sailors will go on to face East Kentwood on the 17th.

West Catholic is now 4-14 and will look to get back on their feet when they face Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central on next Friday at Griffs Ice arena.

In a world where kindness and compassion can be lacking, and happiness is non existent on the news, West Ottawa stood out and showed the world that caring and supporting one another is important this week in their PINK OUT game. With so much focus in the sporting world on players and their individual accomplishments, a game like the Panther’s game this past Wednesday are important. The players all received pink jerseys, tape, and socks to use for the game. Each jersey that the players wore where sponsored by someone in their lives who have been affected, or have passed away, from cancer. The money that these jerseys raised was then donated to the Van Andel Institute For Cancer Research. This special night was capped by a win for the Panthers as they roared past Jenison 4-1, improving their record to 10-7-1 with six of those wins coming in a row. Alex Zimmerman, one of the teams top three leaders in terms of points, had this to say about the game:

“ The atmosphere for this game was incredible. We had a lot more people at our pink out game then our usual crowd, and the fans were awesome and definitely got us pumped up.”

The game was a good example of hope and the fight for a better life without cancer, and there couldn’t have been a team more deserving to host the game. With 10 wins this season, West Ottawa has already won more games than the last two seasons combined. Their resilience has finally paid off and rewarded them with good success this season. They hope to continue their resilience as the season goes on. I asked Zimmerman what he thought was the teams keys to success so far this season and what the team needs to improve on in order for this season to continue well. This is what he had to say:

“Our team strength in definitely our high powered offense and our penalty kill. Our weakness is definitely our tendency to take more penalties than we need to. As the season winds down we just need to play as a team and play panther hockey like we know how to. Also our goalie, Michael Ewing, needs to keep playing hows he’s been. He’s been on fire making a huge contribution to our 6 game win streak.”

The Panthers will look to carry the moment from their Pink Out Game into their next game as they face off against Northview/Sparta/Comstock Park tonight.

Photos are Courtesy of  Laura Veldhof and information about game came from Alex Zimmerman.

We apologize for the delay in getting the rankings to you this week! Here they are. Hockey is picking up its pace as we breeze towards the playoffs. This past week and a half gave fans the opportunity to see a Tier 2 face off for first place and numerous well played games across the Midwest as teams battle it out to move up the rankings. Make sure to check out last weeks rankings to see who moved up as there has been a lot of movement this week. As always feel free to tell us what you think.

1.) Grand Haven (14-4) OK Conference Tier 1

Grand Haven had another two game win last week as they beat Catholic Central in a big game 3-2 and also blew out West Catholic 7-2. They will face Kenowa Hills next Wednesday at 6:30pm.

2.) Grand Rapids Catholic Central (12-4-1) OK Conference Tier 1

The Cougars had a busy 3 game week and a half last week, and struggled. Their week began with a 3-2 loss to Grand Haven on Wednesday in a game that came down to the third period. They beat Forest Hills Central 2-1 on Friday but lost 2-0 against Portage Central. Their Next game will be on Saturday 8:58pm against East Grand Rapids. The game will be at Southside Community Center.

3.) Forest Hills Eastern/ Northern (12-4) OK Conference Tier 1

The Husky/Hawks beat Grandville this week as they continue to fight for first place in our rankings. Their next game will be Saturday against Big Rapids at Ferris State University. The game time is 2:00pm.

4.) Kenowa Hills (13-4) OK Conference Tier 2

A two game week gave the Knights an opportunity to hold onto first place in their tier this week. After beating West Catholic 4-2 on Wednesday, they were unable to hold onto first place as they lost to East Kentwood 4-3.

5.) Mona Shores (9-7) OK Conference Tier 1

The Sailors had a packed full week and a half as they managed to win two of their three games. They lost the first game to Plymouth Salem 6-5 on a late third period breakaway goal, but managed to bounce back with two wins against Rockford and Traverse City Reps.

6.) Rockford (10-8) OK Conference Tier 1

Rockford loss in a rematch with Mona Shores last Wednesday to the tune of a 4-1 score. They rebounded on Friday however as they doubled up the score on their way to a 8-4 win over Saganaw Nouvel. Their next game is this Friday at 8:00pm vs Macomb Dakota.

7.) East Grand Rapids (9-6) OK Conference Tier 1

The Pioneers improved their record this week and won 4-2 against Granville who continues to struggle.

8.) Lowell-Caledonia (14-2) OK Conference Tier 3

Lowell-Caledonia split their two games this past week and a half as they dropped a 6-3 game against West Ottawa but beat South Christian. They continue their strong season and hope to win when they play the Bay Area Thunder on Saturday.

9.) Jenison (10-6) OK Conference Tier 2

Jenison pounded the Unity Knights 10-2 but lost to Grand Rapids Christian 2-1 this past week and a half. They play West Ottawa tonight at 6:30pm at Edge Ice Arena.

10.)East Kentwood(9-9) OK Conference Tier 2

In a hard fought game for first place in Tier 2, the Falcons squeaked by Kenowa Hills 4-3. They will look to hold onto the top spot as they play Forest Hills Central Tonight at 8:00pm.

Honorable Mention

11.) Grand Rapids Christian (10-6-1) OK Conference Tier 3

The Eagles pushed by Jenison 2-1 this past week. Their next game will be against Kenowa Hills tonight at Jolly Rogers Ice Arena. The game will begin at 7:30pm.

12.) West Ottawa (10-7-1) OK Conference Tier 3

Two wins against Grand Rapids City and Lowell-Caledonia improved West Ottawa’s record this past week and a half. They stand at 5-2-1 in their tier and will look to improve when they puck drops against Jenison tonight at 6:30. Check out the coverage of their win against Lowell-Caledonia here.

13.) Hudsonville (6-11) OK Conference Tier 2

Hudsonville suffered two losses this week. They continued to struggle for the second week in a row and will hope to turn it around against Reeths-Puffer on Friday.

14.) Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (6-11) OK Conference Tier 2

A five hundred week for the Rangers keeps them at the bottom of the rankings this week. They lost to Catholic Central 2-1 but beat South Christian with a five goal second period on their way to a 7-2 victory. They also will play tonight as they face off against the East Kentwood Falcons at 8:00pm

15.) Northview/Comstock Park/Sparta(8-6-2) OK Conference Tier 3

The Cats pulled out two wins this past week and a half. Both wins came against the Grand Rapids Ice Hawks. They shut out the Hawks 8-0 on Friday and beat them soundly on Saturday as well 6-2.

span style=”font-family: ‘Cambria’, serif;”

Our coverage of hockey took another step this week as new reporter Alex Porter was able to cover his first hockey game between Grand Haven and Reeths Puffer on Saturday. (Coverage Here)We look forward to bringing you more coverage of more games each week, and we are excited to grow our hockey division here at West Michigan Allstar. If you can all remember, last week our ranking were really shook up as Forest Hills Eastern/Northern jumped into the top two. Let us know what you think about this weeks rankings! Who does and doesn’t belong? Who should be higher? Who should be lower? We look forward to your feedback!

1.)Grand Rapids Catholic Central (11-2-1) OK Conference Tier 1

With a big 7-0 shut out win against Hartland on Saturday the Cougars have 11 wins on the season. They will look to grow their win column when they play number 2 Grand Haven on Wednesday Febuary 3rd.

2.)Grand Haven (12-4) OK Conference Tier 1

Grand Haven had a two win week this past week as they downed both East Grand Rapids and Reeths Puffer to take back the second spot.

3.)Forest Hills Eastern/ Northern (11-4) OK Conference Tier 1

The Husky/Hawks won another game last week as they beat West Catholic on Tuesday. Their next game will be against Grandville on Wednesday. The game will be at Georgetown Ice Arena at 5:30.

4.)Kenowa Hills (12-3) OK Conference Tier 2

The Knights had a great win against Hudsonville by scoring 5 goals in the second period to dash the Eagles hopes of a win. Their strong showing moves them up in the standings. Check out the game coverage here.

5.) East Grand Rapids (7-5) OK Conference Tier 1

A 5-3 loss to Grand Haven on Friday drops the Pioneers out of the fourth spot but they have a chance to turn things around as they play Mattawan tonight and Grandville on Friday.

6.) Rockford (8-7) OK Conference Tier 1

Rockford beat Lake Orion 3-2 last week to improve their record so that it is now over .500. Their next game is Wednesday 8:00pm at Griff’s Ice House vs Mona Shores.

7.)Mona Shores (7-6) OK Conference Tier 1

After struggling for much of the first half of the season, Mona Shores had a great week as they won two games. They beat Grandville 6-2 last Sunday and beat the Traverse City Bay Reps 7-4 on Saturday. If they keep up their winning ways they will move up the rankings in the next few weeks.

8.)Lowell-Caledonia (13-1) OK Conference Tier 3

Lowell-Calendonia won again this past week as they knocked off their rival Jenison 5-3. They will play Grand Rapids South Christian on Friday.

9.)Jenison (9-5) OK Conference Tier 2

Losing to Lowell-Calendonia doesn’t hurt Jenison this week but it doesn’t help them either. They will stay the same in the rankings and will look to improve when they face off against Grand Rapids Christian on Wednesday. The game will be at Jolly Rogers Ice Arena at 7:30.

10.)East Kentwood(7-7) OK Conference Tier 2

A painful 10-4 loss against Livonia Churchill on Saturday drops the Falcons to a five hundred record.

Honorable Mention

11.)Grand Rapids Christian (9-8-1) OK Conference Tier 3

The Eagles had two wins this week to get themselves into our standings for the first time this year. They will play the Grand Rapids Ice Hawks this week. Barring a disastrous showing, they should improve their record even more as the Hawks have struggled this season.

12.)West Ottawa (8-7-1) OK Conference Tier 3

With a win against GR West Catholic last Sunday and a 8-0 shut out win against the Ice Hawks on Saturday, the Panthers improve their record and move themselves up in the rankings.

13.) Hudsonville (6-9) OK Conference Tier 2

Hudsonville suffered a staggering loss on Wednesday to Kenowa Hills and suffered another hard 7-3 loss to Flushing. Their only win this week came on Friday as they beat Goodrich 5-3.

14.)Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (5-10) OK Conference Tier 2

A win and a loss this past week keeps the Rangers down in the rankings this week as they look forward to facing South Christian/Calvin Christian on Wednesday.

15.)Northview/Comstock Park/Sparta(6-6-2) OK Conference Tier 3

The Cats lost another game this past week at the hands of Grand Rapids Christian on Saturday. The final score was 7-3 and leaves the Cats at the bottom of our standings this week. They wont play another game until February 3rd when they face off against Jenison.

/p

Hockey is really starting to heat up the cold winter month of January. In this past week, our number one team from last week stumbled again, and other teams took this opportunity to climb the ranks and seat themselves higher in the standings. What will this week’s games hold? Will other teams step up this week to try and take the top spot? Let us know what you think!

1.)Grand Rapids Catholic Central (10-2-1) OK Conference Tier 1

With Grand Haven’s two losses opening the door to the top spot this week, the Cougars took the opportunity to take back the top spot. With 5 goals in both of their games, Catholic Central won both matches easily. 

2.) Forest Hills Eastern/ Northern (10-4) OK Conference Tier 1

The Husky/Hawks are looking very good as the season goes on. With a win against Grand Haven this past week, they showed they have what it takes to take down our top teams and claim the number one spot. 

3.)Grand Haven (10-4) OK Conference Tier 1

Grand Haven had a tough week this week as they lost two games. The first loss was to Forest Hills Northern/Eastern, and the second loss came at the hands of Grand Rapids Catholic Central. This tough break drops them down this week to the third spot.

4.)East Grand Rapids (7-4) OK Conference Tier 1

Stagnant this week, EGR will play Grand Haven at Patterson Ice Center this Friday. The game will be at 8pm.

5.) Kenowa Hills (11-3) OK Conference Tier 2

The Knights also found a way to a two win week last week as they beat Reeths Puffer 4-3 and Portage Central 6-4.

6.) Rockford (7-7) OK Conference Tier 1

With 1-1 record for the week, Rockford still can’t break the threshold of .500. They need to put together some consecutive wins as the season continues.

7.)Mona Shores (5-6) OK Conference Tier 1

Struggling to get back to their winning ways, the Sailors fell back onto the losing road this past week when they lost to Rockford. Their next chance to rite the ship will be on Wednesday against Grandville.

8.)Lowell-Caledonia (12-1) OK Conference Tier 3

Lowell-Calendonia was able to beat Grand Rapids Christian Saturday after an easy win over the Grand Rapids Ice Hawks in a shortened two period game on Friday. Check out the coverage of their game vs the IceHawks here.

9.)Jenison (9-4) OK Conference Tier 2

Another team with a two win week, Jenison continues to climb. They beat Northview/Comstock Park 4-3 on Friday and beat Manistee 4-1 on Saturday.

10.)East Kentwood(7-6) OK Conference Tier 2

An 8-3 win over Reeths Puffer added another win to the Falcon’s record. They now are one game above .500.

Honorable Mention

11.) Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (4-9) OK Conference Tier 2

Two losses and the Rangers continue to look at the rest of the pack from the bottom of the rankings . They will hope to win when they play Rockford on Wednesday at 8pm.

12.)Hudsonville (4-8) OK Conference Tier 2

Hudsonville Lost to South Christian this week. They managed to score two goals, but it wasn’t enough as S. Christian went on to win 3-2. The Eagles next game will be on Wednesday against Kenowa Hills.

13.) West Ottawa (6-7-1) OK Conference Tier 3

With a nice 5-2 win against Madison Heights Bishop Foley this week, West Ottawa adds another win to their record and get one step closer to getting back on track to a winning season.

14.)Northview/Comstock Park/Sparta(6-5-2) OK Conference Tier 3

The Cats fell in both of their games this past week, losing to both Jenison and West Catholic. A two loss week hurts them this week in the rankings.

15.) Grand Rapids West Catholic/Cedar Springs (4-8) OK Conference Tier 2

After a very tough week last week, GRWC/Cedar Springs managed to get a win this week against Northview Comstock Park on Saturday. The score was 6-2.

Lowell-Calendonia blew out the Grand Rapids Icehawks tonight in a shortened game at Griff’s Ice House. It took LC only two periods to win 10-1 against the struggling Icehawks. With only six meager shots towards the net in the entire game, the Icehawks hardly even got the puck into LC’s zone. The entire first period was dominated by Lowell-Calendonia as they scored 8 goals and only gave up two shots. 

The second period was better for the Icehawks as they managed to net one goal and only give up two more. The lone goal for the Ice Hawks was scored by number four Jeffery Oard. LC’s ten goals was enough to end the game after two periods.

The Icehawks were missing a few of their players tonight due to injury and will hope to do better in their next game. Lowell-Calendonia will have to make sure that they continue netting goals as they play Grand Rapids Christian tomorrow night. If they get as many shots as they did tonight, it will be hard to stop them. They launched an astounding 52 shots over the course of the two period game. The win will improve Lowell-Calendonia’s record to 11-1 on season.

What a past week of hockey! There were blowouts, and there were close fought games. We had the chance to go see East Grand Rapids vs Grand Rapids Catholic Central and could not believe the amount of fans and the intensity of the game. West Michigan is without a doubt a great hockey area full of great hockey teams. Here is the rankings for our fifth week of hockey coverage. Let us know what you think and feel free to compare it to last week.

1.)Grand Haven (10-2) OK Conference Tier 1

What a week Grand Haven had this week as they found a way to cruise to two wins in their three games . Their first win was over Hudsonville 11-4, their second win was against against East Kentwood 4-3.  Their loss of the week was against Portage Central with the score ending up 2-1. Their great week leap frogs them back into first place.

2.) Grand Rapids Catholic Central (9-2-1) OK Conference Tier 1

The Cougars also had a great week last week as they beat Grandville 5-1 in their first game this past week, and willed themselves to a win in our game of the week against East Grand Rapids by a score of 2-1. They continue to show their dominance this year.

3.) East Grand Rapids (7-4) OK Conference Tier 1

After losing 2-1 in a close game against Grand Rapids Catholic Central on Friday night, East tried to turn it around against Grand Rapids Forest Hills Eastern/Northern on Saturday, but got creamed 8-2.

4.) Kenowa Hills (9-3) OK Conference Tier 2

A 4-2 loss Friday to Monroe didn’t slow down the Knights for long as they bounced back with a 4-3 win against Grandville. 

5.) Forest Hills Eastern/ Northern (8-4) OK Conference Tier 1

The Husky/Hawks handed East Grand Rapids a resounding defeat as they poured on 8 goals on their way to a 8-2 victory.

6.) Mona Shores (5-5) OK Conference Tier 1

Hosting, and winning, the Konrad Memorial Hockey Tournament this weekend was a great way for the Sailors to keep climbing upward after a sad start to the season. Their next game will be against Traverse City St. Francis at Lakeshore Sports Center at 2:00pm on 1/21/12.

7.)Rockford (6-6) OK Conference Tier 1

With a 1-2 win against Grandville and a 0-4 loss against Monroe last week, Rockford stays at .500.

8.)Lowell-Caledonia (9-1) OK Conference Tier 3

Lowell-Caledonia just keeps rolling this year. Can anyone in Tier 3 stop them?

9.)Jenison (8-4) OK Conference Tier 2

Jenison has improved nicely so far this season and will look to continue improving when they play Manistee at Georgetown Ice Center on Saturday. The game is at 5:30pm.

10.)East Kentwood(6-6) OK Conference Tier 2

East Kentwood struggled this week as they lost twice. Their first loss was at the hands of Mona Shores and the second loss was at the hands of Grand Haven. They will try to do better against Reeths Puffer on the thirteenth of January

Honorable Mention

11.) Hudsonville (4-7) OK Conference Tier 2

Losing twice this past week, 11-4 against Grand Haven and 3-6 against FHC,  is exactly what Hudsonville didn’t want to do. Having a double loss week keeps them down in the standings for another week.

12.) Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central (4-7) OK Conference Tier 2

Another win and another loss keeps Central towards the bottom of the pack this week. Their win over Hudsonville was quite impressive however as they double the Eagles points on their way to a 6-3 victory.

13.) Northview/Comstock Park/Sparta(6-3-2) OK Conference Tier 3

The Cats got another win this week, but they will still need a few more to move back up in the standings.

14.)West Ottawa (5-7-1) OK Conference Tier 3

After their nice 9-2 win against Hudsonville, West Ottawa tried to right the ship this week but were beaten down by Flushing and Davidson. They will hope to get another win on Friday when they play Madison Heights Bishop Foley on Friday. 

15.) Grand Rapids West Catholic/Cedar Springs (3-8) OK Conference Tier 2

Can anyone say ouch? A three loss week killed GRWC/Cedar Springs as they plummet to the bottom of the rankings this week.

p

span style=”font-family: ‘Cambria’, serif;”/span

Beautiful Patterson Ice Arena was packed last night in anticipation of a great game between Grand Rapids Catholic Central and East Grand Rapids. Those who came got what they came for.

The first period action was fast paced and intense as the players flew across the glistening ice. The Cougars came out strong and carried the play as they launched shot after shot at Steven Longfellow. Steven however was up to the challenge as he kept his team in the game stopping 14 of the 15 shots. The other shot was stopped by a goaltender’s best friend, the red pipe, allowing East to escape the first period with the score tied 0-0.

The second period started with a huge shift as the Pioneers took the play to GRCC. Staggering and on their heels, the Cougars fought back trying to get the puck out of their zone. They succeeded and got a beautiful opportunity with 7:35 remaining in the period. Longfellow kept his team in the game however as he made another brilliant save to keep the game tied. The high pace and intensity seemed to do East in during the last minute of the period however as Longfellow, after stopping another 12 shots, was unable to stop the 13^th shot with 0:37 left in the period after his team turned it over in their own end. GRCC took their one goal lead into the third period.

The third period began with a feel of desperation and focus by the Pioneers as they took the play to the Cougars once again. For the first two minutes East kept the play deep in GRCC’s zone and because of this they were awarded numerous opportunities. Peter Stewart finally capitalized on one of these opportunities as he scored the equalizer with 15:49 remaining in the period. The celebration was short lived however as another turnover allowed GRCC to hack at the puck and bounce it over Longfellow only thirteen second later. This goal, scored by Catholic forward Donald Sund would prove to be the game winner as GRCC would go on to win 2-1.

GRCC is now 9-2-1 on the season.

After the loss East forward Travis Baranoski thought that the Pioneers played a good game.

“I thought we played really well. We had tons of chances and were unable to capitalize. We also shot ourselves in the foot on their two goals. Both were the direct results of turnovers by us. We played well enough to win, it just wasn’t our night. We have a big game tomorrow vs. Forest Hills Northern Eastern and we plan on playing just as hard as we did tonight. It’s a league game and two very big points for us. We’ll be ready to go tomorrow and we plan on taking care of business and correcting our mistakes.”

East is now 7-3 with the loss, but will look to improve that record tonight.

Grand Haven hosted East Kentwood in a physical OK-Red showdown Tuesday night. The Bucs, currently sitting at honorable mention in this week’s Division I poll, put up a serious fight against the #1 Falcons, who did not put the game away until a late second-half goal gave them a 2-1 advantage that lasted until time ran out.

East Kentwood controlled the ball early in the game, but Grand Haven’s defense kept them from causing any damage. With 14:33 remaining in the first half, junior midfielder Jacob Vanderlaan of Grand Haven put the ball in the top right corner of the net off a free kick, giving the Bucs a 1-0 lead. They took their lead into halftime and held onto it for the first 20 minutes of the second half, when Nermin Crnkic from East Kentwood found an open spot in front of a crowded goal to tie the game at 1-1.

“I told the guys at halftime to get the first (goal), find a way to equalize it,” East Kentwood head coach John Conlon said. “I thought that we needed to do a way better job of pressuring them which we didn’t do in the first half.”

Overtime seemed to be a likely possibility, but with 1:54 remaining to play, Dzenen Catic of East Kentwood snuck the ball in to put the Falcons up for good.

“We wanted to create more chances than we did in the first half,” Conlon said. “I thought Grand Haven took us out of our game for the first 40 minutes. They’re really well coached and they’re a great team.”

Both Marshall Rusco for Grand Haven and Ryan Warsen of East Kentwood saw a fair amount of action in goal with seven saves for Rusco and six for Warsen.

“(Warsen) was under the most pressure he’s been under all season,” Conlon said. “I thought Ryan Warsen was great.”

East Kentwood improved to 9-1-1 on the season, while Grand Haven fell to 6-3-1. There is still a lot of time left in the season and Conlon expects to meet Grand Haven again somewhere down the road.

“I’m sure we’ll play them again,” Conlon said. “This is only the first round and we’re happy to get out of here with a win.”