The Chelsea Girls soccer team finished the season with an 3-0 loss to Division 2’s 6th-ranked Dexter in District Finals.
The girls finished their season 16-5-3 overall while setting school records for most wins in a season; most goals scored in the season at 87. Previously, 84 goals was the previous high in 2007.
The team also set a record for consecutive shutouts in a season – 9 straight games. The previous record was 6.
“While we came up just short on winning a league title (only 1 goal separated us and Dexter for a share of the league title); and we came up short in the post season; these girls and the community have so much to be proud of,” said coach Shawn Hayes.
The 2017 team achieved all these accolades while dealing with its most injury-riddled season in a long time; possibly in history. “We played over half our season without 7 of our teammates; sometimes more due to other minor injuries or illness,” Hayes said.
Of those seven, five were seniors, and all of them were or would have been major contributors to the team this season., the coach said.
On paper, we are a soccer program who this year had only 5 players (out of 40 total) play club soccer for clubs outside of Chelsea for the majority of their youth careers. “We played against and competed with and beat teams who on paper have players playing club soccer at “the big name clubs” all season long and against schools that are double our school size or larger. Most of our girls in the high school soccer program right now have grown up playing soccer together here in town with each other which has helped keep the groups of kids closer together and more committed to one other,” the coach said.
In addition, “Most of our kids playing soccer are also playing another sport or two – we actually have players participating in four sports, dueling in both soccer and track during the spring season.”
The coach wanted to thank the seniors on the team for “their dedication to the program and to each other and for finishing their careers on a high.”
He also wanted to thank the parents and grandparents who helped see the girls get to this point. “Many of you have helped coach the girls over the years and without those contributions in the early stages of the girls’ soccer careers they never would have developed the passion for the game without you supporting them,” Hayes said.
He also wanted to thank all the coaches on the CHS staff who helped the team get to experience this kind of special season together, including JV coach Jason Murphy, Jordan Miller, Ben Sporer and Bill Loveday, past CHS coaches Lauren Hogan and Scotty Baxter also played a role in the girls high school soccer experience.
“A special thanks to the Chelsea Soccer Club’s outgoing coach, Casey Bantle for his contributions to the girls development over the last 3-4 years,” he said, adding, “You’ve all played a special role in these girls lives and without you the team wouldn’t have had the record setting season we’ve shared together.”
Below are some of the team’s accomplishments:
- 2nd in SEC White
- 16-5-3 Record – Losses came to Division 2’s 6th Ranked Dexter (twice); 7th ranked Linden and 12th ranked Dewitt while also losing to Division 1’s 4th Ranked Livonia Stevenson.
- CHS Goals Record: 87
- CHS Shutout Streak Record: 9 Games
- CHS Wins in a Season Record: 16 Wins
- CHS Shutouts in a Season Record: 15 Shutouts
