By BUTCH HARMON
While the East Lansing boys soccer team won the Division 2 state title with a 2-0 victory over Spring Lake this month, the seeds of that championship were planted last October, when the Trojans lost in the regional championship match.
“We lost in the regional finals last year, and the guys were kind of upset they let that one get away,” said veteran head coach Nick Archer, who completed his 38th year of coaching with the Trojans this fall. “From where we came from, we were a work in progress. We had our scorers coming back from last year, but it took us awhile; it was near midseason when they somehow decided to play both sides of the ball.”
Once the Trojans put their explosive offense together with their stingy defense, they proved to be tough to beat. They began their title run down the stretch when they captured the CAAC Cup Tournament.
“We played real well in cup play,” Archer said. “There were four teams rated in the state – Holt, Okemos, DeWitt, Mason. We made it all the way through, and we gained some confidence heading into state tournament play.” East Lansing won the CAAC Cup Tournament with a 2-1 win over Holt in the championship match.
Once the Trojans hit the state tournament, they were unbeatable. They went 3-0 in district play and outscored their three opponents by a 12-1 combined score, finishing by defeating DeWitt 4-1 in the title match.
They were just as dominant in the regional at Fenton, as they defeated Lapeer East 4-0 in the semifinal and Linden 3-0 in the final.
East Lansing’s closest match of the state tournament came in the state semifinal, when it edged Lake Shore 1-0. “That was our closest call,” Archer said. “We were up 1-0, and they hit a crossbar late in the game, but we went on to win it.”
East Lansing finished the season with a 25-2 overall record. The state title was the fourth in school history, adding to those won in 1987, 2002, and 2005. The school also finished as state runner-up twice.
East Lansing outscored its opponents 95-17 this season. Junior forward DeJuan Jones led the team in scoring with 27 goals and eight assists. He was also named first-team all-state. Senior forward Ben Swanson-Ralph was selected second-team all-state, while senior midfielder Tommy Lammers was a third-team all-state selection. Senior goalkeeper Blair Moore and senior defender Michie Nimsombun were both named honorable-mention all-state.
Moore missed part of the early season because of an injury. “We lost Blair to a hand injury early in the season,” Archer said. “Chris Wallace stepped in and did a nice job for us. We got Blair back just before Cup play. The kids have a lot of confidence with him back there.”
With a fourth state title in the trophy case, the Trojans will be looking to add another next year.
“We have DeJuan back and some other kids back,” Archer said. “Some of our younger kids did very well, and we expect them to improve. Next year will be a new season, and it depends on how hard they want it and are willing to work.”