Devon’s Sports Watch

Fraser athletics has been off to a rough start since the fall season began and not much got better last week. This week we will continue to discuss Fraser football, boys’ soccer, boys’ tennis, take a look at the game of the week, and Michigan’s big recruiting weekend.

Anchor Bay celebrating their 39-0 victory over the Fraser Ramblers. 9/25/15.
Devon Schwarze-Hemelberg
Anchor Bay celebrating their 39-0 victory over the Fraser Ramblers. 9/25/15.

 

1. Fraser Football Gets SMACKED

We’re now 5 games into the year, and the team is still without a win. They started off good with a couple defensive stops, but the Tars would soon take over. They controlled the tempo of the game and were able to dominate Fraser on both sides of the ball. Another lackluster showing by the offensive line is partially to blame as is the defense. The offensive line has yet to learn how to pass block or pick up a blitz. Nearly the entire defense looked lost, leaving holes unfilled and blowing coverages constantly. They’ve been shutout twice in the last 3 weeks. That hasn’t happened since the 2011 season. This is week 5, going into week 6. This isn’t the first game of the year. This isn’t acceptable at all. This team has been poorly coached and has yet to adjust to the new system. It’s obvious the coaches aren’t making much of an impact and the players don’t seem to care by their lack of play. There are still 4 games to go, but if the team continues to play as so, you can expect a winless season in Coach Skladanowski’s first year.

 

2. Fraser Soccer Continues Unspectacular Play

The varsity team has had a rough year and it continued last week as they split their games losing to Eisenhower 2-0 and defeating Utica 4-0. They are now 11-2-2 on the year. Not bad, but for a team coached by Thaier Mukhtar, perfection is demanded. They came out slow and sluggish against Eisenhower, but it didn’t cost the Ramblers until the 2nd half. That’s when Ike senior Ben Campbell scored on a goal mid way through the 2nd half. He later fed Zach Matovski a ball that he connected on with 13:42 left in the game. It was another poor offensive shown by the Ramblers, one where the guys couldn’t finish near the box.

Wednesday’s game went a lot better for the Ramblers as John Steffes and co. were able to shut out the Cheiftains. The Ramblers scored early and often. Seniors Nick Sharpe, Jordan Hogard, and Gordie Petty all found the back of the net. Sandro Suffrendini also scored for Fraser as the Ramblers went on to win 4-0 against Utica. Hopefully the offense can continue this kind of play and help Fraser get back to the final four.

 

3. Fraser Boys’ Tennis Captures MAC Blue Title

The Boys’ tennis team has finished undefeated in divisional play for the second straight year and captured another MAC Blue title. This is the second straight title for the tennis team and coach Gregory Dalida. They captured the title last Wednesday by beating Port Huron 5-3 in a MAC Blue match. They’ve been led this year by the spectacular play of Adam Culliver and Brett Fistler, who are the team’s top 2 singles players. Gregory Dalida has really improved this team since becoming coach and the boys should be able to win their district later this fall.

 

4. Cass Tech vs Detroit King

This biggest game in the state this week was played in the heart of the state, Detroit. The two best teams in the city faced off in a game for the ages. Both teams field some of the best talents in the state and had a combined 20+ players with Division 1 college scholarship offers take the field last Saturday. The teams both came in at 4-0, but only one would remain undefeated. That team would be Detroit King.

Cass Tech jumped out to an early 14-0 lead after touchdown runs of 74 & 42 yards by QB Rodney Hall and Donovan Johnson. The two teams traded blows for most of the game as King’s Dontre Boyd returned an interception for a touchdown. They missed the extra point but were still up 20-14. The teams traded scores once again as Cass Tech took a 21-20 lead until Kevin Willis ran in a 30 yard touchdown for King. They converted the 2 point conversion to go up 28-21 with 11:51 left in the 4th quarter. Cass Tech scored late in the 4th and sent the game into overtime.

Cass Tech received the ball first but could not score because of the penalties they caused themselves. King took over and ran the ball a few times until they were able to get into field goal range at the 3 yard line. Everyone thought they’d run it on 4th and inches, but coach Harvel had faith in his senior kicker, Anwar Miah, and he did not disappoint. He hit the game winning field goal as the Crusaders took the win verse archival Cass Tech, 31-28. Detroit belonged to the Crusaders.

 

5. Wolverines Have Huge Recruiting Weekend

Michigan faced off against no.22 BYU Saturday at the Big House. Many big time recruits were in attendance including the number 1 overall prospect in the 2016 class, Rashan Gary. He was accompanied by 4* LB/DE Carlo Kemp, 4* RB Chris Evans, among many other highly touted recruits. It was a good weekend for the team as they were able to shut out the Cougars 31-0 at home. It was a big win for the school as they improved to 3-1, but it was an even bigger win for the future Michigan recruiting classes. It shows that Michigan is starting to return to a national powerhouse and that they can win the big games against quality opponents. Wins like these will only continue to further prove the return of Michigan and kick start Harbaugh’s legacy at U of M.